Symptoms of Scabies – 2 Main Symptoms To Be Aware of

Symptoms of Scabies – Important Facts

There are very few symptoms of scabies.  Scabies is an extremely contagious mite infestation of the skin.   Mites differ from insects as they have eight legs and an insect has 6.  They cannot jump and are not at all like head lice.

Many people associate scabies with being unclean, this is a misconception.  Even though it is very common among the homeless population, they are also common in children.  Scabies can be passed on through direct physical contact, including sexual intercourse.

The scabies mite (sarcoptes scabiei) is small in size, female mites are often as small as 0.3 of a millimetre whilst the male mite can be as small as 0.1 millimetre.  To help rid you of a scabies infestation you can have either an oral medication or an external lotion.

Two Main Symptoms of Scabies

• Itchiness, this is an extremely sever itch, however the itch tends to be only in the affected areas.  If scabies is left untreated they can spread throughout the whole body.
• Cuts from scratching or rash, having cuts and scabs are common as you are constantly itching.  This often starts as a small rash but as the infestation gets worse so does the itching.  It is quite common to make yourself bleed from scratching the itch.

It is very easing to misinterpret the symptoms of scabies, many may consider the itch to be an effect of being too hot.  If scabies is left untreated for an extremely long period of time, it can even spread to the mouth and eyes.

Speaking from personal experience of dealing with scabies, I can tell you that even though it is only itching it is very hard to cope with.  There was an outbreak of scabies at the school where my children go.  By the time all of us parents had received a letter most of our children were already infested.  In hugging our children we got infested ourselves.

People with type A blood, often require a different type of lotion than what someone with O type blood.  This is because your blood can mutate the mites.  Again I know this from personal experience.  If this is the case the lotion you will probably have is Ascabiol Emulsion 25%w/v.

What Treatment Options Are There?

I must inform you that whilst the treatment is very effective, it burns…..a lot.  So much so that when my husband applied the lotion he had to jump straight in the shower to wash it off.  The burning is almost unbearable, children find it hard to cope with the burning and it often makes them very upset.

Treatments for scabies that are in lotion form are also very effective against head lice, but you must dilute the lotion as it states on the label.  It states to leave the lotion on overnight but it is very effective after 1 hour.

Symptoms of scabies can be noticed quickly if you are aware of an outbreak; if you are not aware of any such outbreak then it can take a while before you notice and seek treatment.  This is why scabies can become severe.