How Do You Know if your Scabies Treatment Worked?

Scabies being a contagious and parasitic infestation, it is sometimes difficult to treat it completely. Hence there are a few things one should know when it comes to treating scabies. Have a look.

Possibilities after Scabies Treatment
It is not always true to say that the scabies treatment turns successful. People treated for scabies sometimes feel as though the medication did not work. Ineffective treatment or failure leads to frequent doctor visits and surplus use of potentially toxic drugs over multiple treatments. This may also create chances of further infestation, including Crusted scabies – a deadly form of scabies. And, with all this it is not required to mention about the money spent and stress associated with being unable to find a proper treatment.

Here, it would be significant to understand the ways to properly treat scabies and what to expect in the aftermath of cure.

Standard Scabies Treatment
The standard treatment for scabies includes topical ointments and scabicides – medications recommended to treat scabies. To ensure that scabies treatment is successful, proper procedure and guidelines should be followed. 

Often, people are recommended to use permethrin cream to treat scabies. However, with the increase in the extent and number of scabies patients, the permethrin treatment usually fails. Yet another treatment recommended is the Lindane. But, the FDA has banned the use of Lindane for scabies due to its pesticidal properties and that it can lead to cancer and other deadly side-effects.  

Medications like Dr. Scabies that includes natural ingredients like Sulfur and tee tree oil can prove effective in treating scabies. These are over-the-counter medications and do not need doctor’s prescription to buy.

The right way to apply these over the counter cream is: apply the cream 2-3 times a day on a clean and dry skin area. You can use them all over the body. The cream should be left on overnight. This will help the patient get relief from that itching that persists badly at night.

Taking preventive measures are also a must. In the morning, clothes and laundry that have been used by an infested person should be washed. Person's bedding and any other surfaces or items that have been touched by the infested person should also be washed. Things like upholstery, mattresses that cannot be washed should be vacuumed well. The individual should then wash the cream off of the body.

After the initial treatment, this exact routine should be followed a second time for one week so as to kill any mites hatched from eggs that may have survived the initial treatment. Although, there is no known medication that will surely kill the eggs, Dr. Scabies and some of the other natural treatments tend to do so. Plus, it is advisable to strictly follow the treatment by all individuals within the household at the same time, even if they are not experiencing symptoms.

Post Scabies Syndrome: What if the Treatment Didn't Work?

The treatment takes time to show its results. This is because it takes 48-72 hours for the lotion to kill the mites. Even after that, the eggs and feces that are left behind in their burrows may continue to annoy the skin until the body absorbs or expels the debris.

In addition, it is important to know that even though your treatment has started, it is still unlikely to be the end of the itching. The reason of post scabies syndrome is currently unidentified, but many scabies sufferers continue to experience scabies-like symptoms long after the mites have been successfully eliminated.

While some dermatologists believe that these symptoms arose because the body still tries to expel the debris left by the mites, other think that the body may be exhibiting a long-lasting immune reaction to the mites that was once but is no longer there, or possibly to the treatment.

To avoid the potential side effects when using any prescription drug, one should be certain to discuss how to use the medication and the possible side effects that might be hinder your comfort. A medical professional may be able to suggest some less severe alternatives.

Proper checkup, treatment and precautions are a must to treat off the scabies infestation completely in the first go. 

Skin Rash - What can I do about Scabies?

 

Scabies caused by the human itch mite Sarcoptes Scabiei is a contagious skin infestation. The mite gets transferred from infected person to normal one through the means of physical contact and creates burrows beneath the skin to survive and lay eggs.

Scabies has become a widespread disease and every year around 300 million people are infected with this skin disease. The following article is about the causes and treatment of scabies.

Scabies gets transferred through a close physical contact-hugging or sex with a person infested with it or though sharing patient’s belongings. People in nursing homes, crowded locations, prisons, classrooms and living in same house are most vulnerable of catching the infection. But scabies can be eliminated with the aid of over the counter drugs, natural remedies and change in pattern of lifestyle.

The initial symptoms of scabies are seen as skin rashes and intense itching which gets worse during the night.

Causes of Scabies
Scabies can be transferred through skin-to-skin contact with a scabies patient. After the contact the female mites creates burrows underneath the skin to lay eggs. After a short incubation period, the eggs hatch to become larvae and reach the surface of the skin from where they get transferred to another host or other parts of the body.

Scabies mites also get transferred through sexual act that’s why it is also called as a sexually transmitted disease, although it’s not an STD. But of course, it can be transferred due to any sort of physical contact with the person infected from it. The bugs can travel between family members and sexual partners and if untreated it can get worse. Another means of scabies transfer is through shared clothing or bedding. For instance, if you use the same pillow which was used by the scabies patient last night then you can likely get infected.

The scabies mites cannot survive without the human host for more than 72 hours so this implies if you happen to come in contact with something that hasn’t been touched or used by the infected person for 3 or more days, then you are less likely to get scabies.

Treatment of Scabies
The only way to eliminate the scabies mites and rash from the body is through medications and precautions. Following are few highly recommended medicines for scabies treatment.

Permethrin cream – This is the most common topical medication recommended for scabies treatment. It is available as 5% permethrin which acts as an insecticide to eradicate the mites from the body. It is safe to be used for adults, pregnant women and even children below 2 months.

Lindane lotion – Lindane is prescribed to people when other medicines of scabies treatment fail to give effective results. It’s not safe for use in children under 2 years, pregnant or nursing women and elderly people.

Crotamiton – Eurax, is available in the form of cream or lotion and can be applied over the skin for relief from the scabies mites. But it is recommended to be used on children or pregnant and nursing women.

Ivermectin – Ivermectin which is officially named as Stromectrol is an oral drug recommended for treatment of people with weak immune systems. It is prescribed when other scabicides fail to work. Pregnant women and lactating mothers should not use this without the doctor’s consultation.

Sulfur ointment- This has been used since long for scabies treatment and is considered as an effective treatment of scabies. Dr Scabies is a popular medicine for scabies treatment which is available as an over the counter and can be safely used without the doctor’s recommendation. It contains sulfur and other natural ingredients that can kill and destroy the scabies mites.