• ** SCABIES **


This is the scabies mite - a microscopic parasite.

                                     SCABIES OUTBREAK!
                                           October 2009

Dear Blurbers: 

We are currently experiencing a severe problem with scabies here at our Home and it is affecting all of us.  However, don’t panic, the problem is manageable and treatable.  Let me start out by telling you a bit about scabies.  (By the way, the “doctor talk” word for scabies is: Sarcoptes scabiei. J)  Next, we will cover treatment and prevention along with what to expect undergoing treatment for scabies here at the Home.  Then I will give you some links to other sites where you can get more information.  Thru all of this, I will try to pass on the personal aspect of having gone thru this treatment myself.  Finally, I will ask you to go to “Miles’ Messages” for a commentary on this topic.

 


Highlights:

·   Scabies is a highly contagious skin disease caused by a tiny, eight-legged parasite, the Sarcoptes scabiei, or “itch mite,” which burrows under the skin and lays eggs.

·   The eggs mature in about 21-days and the baby mites make their way back to the surface of the skin and the cycle starts again.

·   Usually spread from person-to-person by close, personal contact.

·   Can be spread from sexual contact or by bed linen, towels, clothing, etc.

·   Can spread especially quickly in hospitals, nursing homes, child care centers, etc., where there is frequent skin contact.

·   Scabies die quickly away from the human body in about 48 hours.

·   Most common symptom: very itchy rash, worse at night.

·   Rash can be anywhere on the body, but is most common on hands, breasts, elbows, knees, wrists, armpits, genital area, & waistline.

·   Often the rash looks like red bumps, “pimples,” or tiny blisters, which form a line.

·   Symptoms begin 2 to 6 weeks after the first exposure to scabies or 1 to 4 days after re-exposure.

·   Scratching may cause skin to become infected with bacteria.

·   Here at the Home, if you have a questionable rash, check with your Section Leader or go to ACC.  Get treatment immediately! 

·   DO NOT WAIT – quick treatment is important to start your own healing and to prevent the spreading of scabies. 


Scabies is Treatable:

·   Scabies is very treatable and early treatment is very important to prevent spreading the disease.

·   Here at the Home, Elimite® (Permethrin Cream) is used to treat scabies.

·   It is massaged thoroughly into the skin from the neck down, making sure that you reach every “nook and cranny.”  Assistance and instructions will be provided (such as putting the lotion on your back) from ACC nurses.

·   Important: itching may continue for several weeks after treatment.  This does not mean that the treatment did not work or that you have scabies again.

·   Treatment may be repeated in a week.

·   Clothing and linen must be washed in hot water.  Clean clothing in your room will be “bagged” for 7 days.  During that time, any live mites will die.

·   There is no need for treatment of rugs or fumigation of your room, other than vacuuming and general cleanliness.

 


Scabies Can be Prevented:

·   Infected persons will be isolated until treatment is complete.  Here at the Home, Members will be assigned a designated restroom and will receive Meals-on-Wheels until cleared.

·   Do not share any clothing, bedding or other personal articles with an infected person.

·   As mentioned above, clothing that cannot be laundered or dry-cleaned should be “bagged” for 7-days to prevent re-infection.

·   At the Home, your roommate will be treated as well as he/she may be a “carrier” of the scabies even if no symptoms are shown.

·   If you have any questions, call ACC at 944-4660.

 


Treatment Considerations Here at the Veterans’ Home:

Because the Home is a “community living” environment, special steps and precautions are taken to get Members quick treatment and to prevent the spread of scabies.  *Please remember that while the treatment protocol here at the Home may seem like a pain in the you know what, it is really important to follow the instructions of your doctor, the nurses and the staff that clean your room so this irritating, contagious disease may be eliminated. 

 

* Please DO NOT delay treatment!  If you have a suspicious rash and it is scabies, it will NOT go away on its own – you will need treatment.

 

* Having scabies is nothing at all to be ashamed of as anyone can get it.  You may have gotten in from sitting on a contaminated chair in the TV room.  So, please do not feel any embarrassment when you need treatment.

 

All of your questions will be answered and all steps that are taken are for your healing, treatment, health and to prevent the spread of scabies.  Call ACC at 944-4660.

 

I think it is important that you know what to expect while undergoing scabies treatment so there are no surprises.  Until you complete the treatment process, you will be confined to your room with a restroom specifically designated for those being treated.  You will get Meals-on-Wheels as well.  Here is some of the protocol for treating scabies here at the Home. 

 


Day One:

·   Once you have been identified as having scabies or having been exposed to scabies, you will undergo the treatment protocol.

·   Staff will come to your room at a designated time and will bag up anything that may contain live scabies mites.  This includes virtually anything made of cloth such as clothing, bedding, towels, etc.

·   All “clean” clothing will be bagged and stored for 7-days to ensure that all remaining mites are dead.

·   Seven days worth of clothing will be washed and bagged so you will have things to wear while your clothing items are being stored.

·   Your bed will be stripped and made up with clean bedding.

·   You will be asked to take a shower and to bag all of the clothing items that you took off prior to your shower.

·   You will be given clean clothes to put on after your shower.

·   While taking your shower, staff will make your bed with clean linen.

·   The nurse will bring to you the Permethrin Cream and will do your back and any other areas of the body where you need help after you have taken your shower.

·   Again, when applying the cream, make sure that you get every “nook and cranny” of your body – armpits, skin folds or creases, in between the legs, the genital region, between the buttocks, the hands and feet (using the toothbrush provided to go around the nails), etc.

♦ Echo Connell, RN, our Infection Control Nurse, provides this additional, important information:
The toothbrush supplied with the cream should be used to apply the cream around the nail bed and ALSO used to apply the cream underneath the nails.  As we scratch the itch, we can transfer live mites from our skin to underneath our nail beds.  If an infected person fails to adequately apply the cream under the nail beds, the live mites could crawl out from underneath the nail beds and re-infect the person.  Ideally, trim the nails first, then ensure the nails are clean underneath the nail beds, then applying the cream underneath the nail beds using a toothbrush. (Thank you, Echo!)


·   That completes day one of treatment. 


Day Two:

·   The following day at a designated time, staff will come to your room to sanitize it.  This is a thorough cleaning to help rid your room of any live scabies mites.  This takes about an hour.

·   You will be asked to take a shower to wash off all of the cream that was applied the night before.  Wash thoroughly to make sure all of the cream is removed.

·   Prior to your shower, you will be given a set of clean clothes to wear after you take your shower.

·   Do not return to your room until the sanitization is complete.

·   When you are able to return to your room, congratulations!  You have completed the scabies treatment protocol and you are no longer considered “contagious.” 

If you had the scabies rash, you will need to complete another round of the Permethrin Cream treatment in one week.  The second treatment will not involve the steps taken before to decontaminate your room.  You will be asked to shower, apply the cream, and shower again after 8 hours to remove the cream from your body.  That is all for the second treatment.

 

I have personally been thru these steps and the process is doable.  Yes, it is annoying, intrusive and a pain in the you know what, but it is a lot better than having scabies and/or transmitting scabies to others.  Take a look at the picture of that ugly bug!  Going thru the treatment is much better than having this critter crawling around on your body, burrowing under your skin and laying eggs so that more critters can hatch and infest you.

 

When I went thru the treatment, I did not know what would be done or what I should expect.  Hopefully this information will help you with the treatment process.  Again, it is not hard – it is just a change in routine in order to get rid of the scabies.  Remember that the nurses at the ACC are standing by to answer your questions and help you with your treatment.  That number again is 944-4660.  Wishing you good luck and good health!  ~Miles.

* NOTE: The information provided above is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for getting professional medical care.  In compiling the above, information was used from the CDC, the Maryland Department of Health Disease Control Program, MayoClinic.com and from my personal experiences going thru the treatment myself.

Click <HERE> for an excellent tutorial about scabies.

Check out these links for additional info:

     • CDC     • MayoClinic.com

     • Google Health      • WebMD


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