Motherhood Moment: Healthy Habits: Interview with Medical Director of Lice Clinics of America

Disclosure: LCA sent me product as a thank-you for posting this interview.

Q&A with Dr. Krista Lauer, medical director of Lice Clinics of America

What is the Lice Clinics of America Network?

With more than 350 treatment locations globally, Lice Clinics of America has built the country’s largest network of independently owned lice-treatment clinics. The clinics have successfully performed more than 350,000 lice treatments, featuring the AirAllé, an exclusive lice-treatment medical device that is FDA-cleared.
We are the only company with both clinic and mass retail products, all of which are pesticide-free, all of which are guaranteed to work. The leading pesticide brands are now only 45% effective thanks to pesticide-resistance that they have caused.
Now the clinics have expanded to provide parents with an at-home solution, the Lice Remover Kit, and at-home prevention kit, the Lice Preventer Kit.

What is the 3-step process Lice Clinics of America uses to cure super lice?

Lice Clinics of America provides a quick, effective cure for eliminating super lice and their eggs through a 3-step process involving the FDA-cleared medical device, topical rinse and comb-out.
Step 1: Using our exclusive, FDA-cleared medical device, the AirAllé, this treatment takes 20-30 minutes and has been clinically proven to kill the living lice and 99.2% of their eggs (nits). We follow this up with a comb-out and topical rinse.
Step 2: The purpose of the AirAllé device is to kill the lice and eggs through dehydration. Dead lice and dead eggs will remain in the hair after treatment. AirAllé clinicians will do a post-treatment comb-out with a professional lice comb (which usually takes 30 minutes) to remove the dead lice and eggs.
Step 3: The clinician will then apply a post-treatment topical rinse using dimethicone oil to ensure the eradication of the lice.
Using this procedure, we guarantee you will leave our clinic lice-free.

Why do head lice infestations tend to peak in the winter?

As kids just returned back to school after winter break, the infestation letters are starting to come home with kids again. After holiday travel, close interaction with loved ones and sharing winter gear, such as hats and ear muffs, there tends to be a peak in infestations.

How Do People get infested with lice?

According to the CDC, lice cases in the US fluctuate between 6 and 12 million cases every year. The only way to get lice is through direct contact with the head of an infested individual or by sharing hats/helmets/bed linens/combs/brushes with an infested individual. Lice do not jump or fly and the contact has to be somewhat prolonged.
Selfies, snuggling, sleeping in the same bed provide the best amounts of time for lice to transfer from one head to another.

What are some lice prevention tips for parents?

In order to spot an infestation early, it’s important to perform frequent head checks. Adult lice are the easiest to spot because they are the largest. But, at the size of a sesame seed, they still aren’t that big. Although lice vary in color, they commonly appear to look grayish-white or tan. Adult head lice can only live up to 48 hours without human blood.
Parents can also keep their child’s hair up in buns or braids. But, the most important thing to keep in mind when preventing head lice is to avoid head-to-head contact with others.
Playing the defensive role is the easiest way to avoid getting head lice from others. Staying lice free can be done by remembering not share things like hair brushes, hair accessories, pillows, hooded clothing, and costumes. More than 98% of infestations occur from direct head to head contact, and even though it is extremely rare to get lice from an object (hat, brush etc.), as a precaution, we recommend that these objects not be shared.

Can anyone get head lice or are certain people prone to it?

Lice are an opportunist parasite. Once the bug is in someone’s hair, it’s very easy to pass along from person-to-person, no matter if they are dirty, where they are from or socioeconomic status. There is no socioeconomic tendency and infestations have nothing to do with hygiene. Washing your hair won’t help to remove the lice, but will make it easier for them to cling to the scalp/hair.

How do people get infested with lice?

It is estimated that between 6 and 12 million cases of Lice infestations occur every year.
The primary way to get lice is when a person’s head comes in direct contact with the head of an infested individual. Head-to-head contact doesn’t guarantee the infestation will spread, but it gives lice the best opportunity to move from the hair of the infested person to the hair of a new person.

What is super lice and how is it different from normal head lice?

Super lice are head lice that have developed resistance to the pesticides used in the most common over the counter head lice treatments. Super lice developed following years of exposure to these chemicals. The term “super lice” was coined by the media to describe these genetically evolved lice.
The only way to tell for sure the difference between super lice and normal lice is to look at their genes. Super lice have point mutations in a specific gene that causes reduced neuronal sensitivity to the insecticide.

What are some conditions that make a person’s hair more inclined to attract lice? Less inclined?

Lice are an equal opportunity infester. They are transferred primarily through direct head to head contact with a person who has lice. Given the opportunity lice will transfer from one human head to another. There is some thought that lice may prefer clean hair to dirty hair because it may be easier to crawl through, although this is unclear. A lice infestation is not an indication of poor hygiene and lice do not distinguish based on socioeconomic levels. There are no specific factors that make a person more or less likely to get lice if they come in contact with someone who has an infestation. A head lice infestation is simply a result of exposure.

What are drastic or dangerous consequences that leaving lice untreated can lead to?

A head lice infestation is a nuisance but it is not dangerous. Lice do not carry or transmit any diseases. A person could scratch their scalp causing open areas. There is the possibility that these excoriated areas could become infected, but this is not common.

What is the most common thing people mistake to be nothing, when it comes to potentially having lice?

The most common symptom of a lice infestation is having an itchy scalp. Even then, not everyone with lice will have this symptom. It is common for people to overlook their scalp itchiness thinking that they have dry skin or irritation from a hair product. Lice prefer the areas of the scalp in the hair line behind the ears and at the nape of the neck. If you see someone scratching their head a lot, particularly in these areas, suspect lice.
Also, lice firmly cement their eggs (nits) to the shaft of a hair near the scalp. The nits are tiny and may be mistaken for sand, tiny flakes of dandruff or hair product. An easy way to differentiate is to try to remove what is seen. If it is a nit, it is so firmly attached to the hair shaft that it will not release and slide along the hair.

What are the signs/symptoms to look out for when it comes to lice?

The most common symptom of a lice infestation is an itchy scalp. Itchiness develops as a reaction to lice biting the scalp for a blood meal. It takes 4-6 weeks for a person to react to the bites and develop itchiness, so a person has been infested for quite a while before itchiness occurs. Even then, not everyone with lice will get an itchy scalp. It is estimated that up to 50% of people with a head lice infestation will not have any symptoms!

What is the Lice Preventer Kit?

The Lice Preventer Kit from Lice Clinics of America is an easy to use weekly treatment that interrupts and stops the lice reproductive cycle. The Lice Preventer Kit contains a liquid gel that is applied through the provided no mess dispenser just before shower time that kills any lice that your child may have come in contact with. This liquid gel will kill lice on contact, rinses out with your regular shampoo and has a pleasant scent. If the lice have laid any eggs, the lice that hatch will be killed at the next application, before they can lay any new eggs, thereby ending the lice cycle.
Like all Lice Clinics of America products, the Lice Preventer Kit is non-toxic and pesticide-free. When used weekly, lice are eliminated before the egg laying cycle leads to an infestation. There is no tedious combing, just apply then shower out. We guarantee that the Lice Preventer Kit prevents lice and super lice, or your money back!

What is the Lice Remover Kit?

The Lice Remover Kit (LRK) contains a non-toxic, pesticide-free liquid gel that kills lice, detangles hair and facilitates the removal of lice and eggs—all with no mess and no harsh scent.
The product is the first-of-its-kind, developed in the Lice Clinics of America’s urgent care lice clinics, where over 350,000 head lice treatments have been performed to end infestations. Unlike other dimethicone based formulas, the gel in the LRK easily washes out of the hair and has a fresh pear-blossom scent.
The kit also contains a unique dispenser for applying the gel and controlling the amount of gel applied, and a sturdy comb for removing the lice and eggs.
With the LRK, ending lice infestations at home is easy—and guaranteed (when used as directed).