Techniques for Combing Through Hair to Remove Lice and Nits

The head louse, Pediculus humanus caritis. lives on the head and neck area of human beings of any age. Children are susceptible to the head louse because of the close contact often seen between children. Head lice as adults are six-legged wingless creatures that can crawl quickly around the head.

Lice

• The main symptom of an infestation of head lice is itching of the scalp toward the base of the neck, according to the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The itching is caused by young and adult lice that feed on blood sucked from their host; when hatched, a louse must feed within minutes to survive. Nit is a common term for the eggs laid on individual strands of hair by the female at a rate of between three and five eggs in a 24-hour period, the University of California reports. Each egg is coated in a glue-like substance that allows the egg to remain in position on a strand of hair.

Combing

• Combing of hair infested with lice and nits is important to remove those that are not removed or killed by a pesticide shampoo, which is available with or without a prescription. Combing is completed with a fine-toothed comb. Specially designed lice combs available for nits and lice removal. Both plastic and metal combs are manufactured, with the less flexible metal combs often proving more effective at removing nits and lice, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln reports. Other equipment required for combing lice and nits includes tissue and a bowl of soapy water.

Removal

• One technique for removing nits and lice by combing requires the infested person to wash his hair and soak the hair with salad oil or hair conditioner before removing tangles within the hair. Beginning at the crown of the head, the hair is divided into sections. Each section is combed from the base of the hair slowly to ensure removal of all eggs that are attached to individual hair strands. Between each combing the comb is wiped on tissue to remove lice, nits and debris. After completion of the combing, the tissue should be disposed of. The comb can be dipped in soapy water between combings to ease the passage of the comb through the head. After the combing, the comb should be soaked in ammonia water for 15 minutes or boiled in water for 15 minutes, the University of California advises.

Techniques

• Other techniques included in the combing procedure include the removal of each head louse and egg found by the fingertips of the person examining the head. Scissors can also be used to remove each individual strand of hair that has an egg attached to it. Long, pointed scissors can be used to remove eggs found in the hair.