ELECTRONIC ARTICLE |
From Family Dermatology, Menlo Park, California
| ABSTRACT |
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Methods. One hundred thirty-three subjects participated in 2 open clinical trials. In the first trial, 93 subjects completed treatment using a nontoxic, dry-on, suffocation-based, pediculicide lotion, minimal household cleaning measures, and physical removal of the nits. In the second trial, 40 subjects completed treatment using an identical protocol except that the nits were not removed. Head lice infestation was defined as a wet combing test showing lice. Cure was defined as a wet combing test showing no lice, with an absence of symptoms. Subjects were contacted 6 months later, for assessment of their disease status.
Results. Cure was achieved for 97% of the patients in the first trial and 95% in the second trial. Remission at the follow-up assessment was reported for 77 of 82 subjects (94%) in the first trial and 36 of 38 subjects (95%) in the second trial. There was no statistical difference in cure rates or remission rates between the protocols with and without nit removal. The overall cure rate was 96%, with a remission rate of 94%. There were no adverse effects.
Conclusions. Dry-on, suffocation-based, pediculicide lotion effectively treats head lice without neurotoxins, nit removal, or extensive house cleaning. These results are comparable or superior to the results previously reported for treatments with permethrin, pyrethrin, and malathion.
Key Words: lice Pediculus humanus var capitis resistance permethrin pyrethrin malathion
Abbreviations: DSP, dry-on, suffocation-based pediculicide
Conventional head lice management usually includes use of a neurotoxic insecticide lotion, extensive home cleaning measures, and complete removal of all nits during treatment.1 Many parents think that, despite their following these guidelines, head lice are getting much harder to cure.2,3 There are several explanations for these treatment failures. Investigators have found lice resistant to many of the commonly used pediculicides.411 The recommended household cleaning and nit removal procedures are viewed as a heavy burden, and compliance may be incomplete.1215 Some parents, school nurses, and health care advocates are concerned about the safety and efficacy of neurotoxin-based pediculicides and await the development of safer alternative agents.16 Finally, experts suggest that "there is strong need for the Food and Drug Administration to approve alternative agents."17(p1381) Therefore, it was considered worthwhile to evaluate a new approach to treating head lice. The goal of this project was to perform a preliminary evaluation of a nontoxic, dry-on, suffocation-based pediculicide (DSP) and simpler associated cleaning steps.
| METHODS |
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Subjects
We recruited subjects by advising pediatricians that we were looking for difficult-to-treat head lice cases. The problem could be either that the parents reported failure of a prior treatment or that the parents were resistant to allowing any neurotoxin-based treatment. To enter the study, the participant needed to have an active head lice infestation, as determined with the wet-combing test described below. Siblings and adults in the same family could elect to enter the study on the same basis. Informed consent procedures were followed, and all subjects (or their parents, if the subjects were minors) reviewed and signed an informed consent form before entering the study.
Patients paid a $200 refundable deposit to participate in the research. The deposit was waived in cases of financial difficulty. The deposit provision was part of the informed consent form. The deposit was refundable at the end of the research for all participants, regardless of outcome or whether they completed the full protocol. The goal was to identify parents who intended to participate and carry out the protocol.
Protocols
An uncontrolled open format was used for both trials. Both trials used the same DSP in the same manner, with the same simplified household cleaning rules. The only difference between the trials was that the nits were mechanically removed in trial 1, whereas they were not removed in trial 2. The first 97 subjects entered trial 1. The subsequent 40 subjects entered trial 2. All treatment was performed at home by the parents. All materials and combs used in the trials were supplied by the author.
The household cleaning steps performed at the time of DSP application were as follows. 1) Clean all of the subject's combs and brushes at home, by either putting them through a dishwasher cycle or soaking them for 10 minutes in isopropyl alcohol. 2) Change the subject's clothes to fresh clothes. 3) Heat the subject's pillowcase, sheets, blankets, comforter, and bedspreads in the dryer for 10 minutes and then put them back on the bed.
A course of treatment with the DSP lotion was defined as once-weekly application until cure was achieved, up to a maximum of 3 applications. Each application had the following steps. 1) Apply the lotion thoroughly and wait 2 minutes. 2) Comb out all lotion possible. 3) Dry the hair with a handheld hair drier. 4) Shampoo
8 hours later with the child's usual shampoo. For trial 1, parents were instructed to remove nits during step 2. The parents used first a widely spaced, plastic, detangler comb, then a standard spaced, plastic, pocket comb, and finally a closely spaced, metal-toothed, nit-removal comb (LiceMeister comb, National Pediculosis Association, Needham, MA).19 For trial 2, parents used only the detangler and pocket combs, which do not remove nits, during step 2. The LiceMeister comb was not used.
Infestations were determined with the wet combing test. An active infestation was defined as present when the author found lice in the lotion combed out by parents in step 2. The parents performed the treatment at home and brought the combed-out lotion, on absorbent pads in sealed plastic bags, to the clinic office for the author to assess. This wet combing method of identifying lice is the most accurate way to diagnose active infestations, because it requires finding lice.2022 It is considered superior to both conventional scalp inspection and dry detection combing.23 A positive test result means that lice are present. A negative test result means that no lice are present.
Entry Into the Study
Patients were enrolled in the study after they (or their guardian or parent) gave permission and they demonstrated positive wet combing test results. If the wet combing test did not reveal any lice, then the patient did not enter the study.
Determination of Cure
Patients were defined as cured when they met 2 criteria. First, their wet combing test results became negative. Second, the parents said that their children no longer complained of increased scalp itching or exhibited increased head scratching, and no new nits or crawling lice were noted by the parents.
Determination of Long-Term Follow-up Status
We contacted by telephone all participants in the study, or their parents/guardians,
6 months after completion of treatment. They were asked for any evidence of recurrence, including complaints of itching or observation of increased head scratching, new nits, or crawling lice.
Evaluation of Side Effects
At each office interaction, parents were asked their opinions regarding the work required to perform this treatment and were questioned about any irritation, discomfort, embarrassment, or other symptoms associated with the use of this treatment.
| RESULTS |
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2 = 0.187, P = .001).
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| DISCUSSION |
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The design of this preliminary study was limited by its lack of blinding, randomization, and inclusion of a control or therapeutic comparative group. However, the results of these open clinical trials should still be of great interest to clinicians treating head lice. The overall 96% cure rate is remarkable, in that it equals or exceeds the best efficacy reported for the currently used pediculicides (Table 4). The cure rate observed was determined by using the most rigorous current method. The patient population in the study is especially relevant to today's clinicians, because the majority of these patients had reported failure of previous treatments. Furthermore, all treatment was performed at home by parents, rather than by nurses or technicians. This type of pragmatic study offers clinicians practical information regarding what other parents may reasonably achieve in their homes.
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Physicians familiar with the conventional recommendations for treatment of head lice may find 2 results of this study particularly surprising. First, nit removal was not required or helpful in curing head lice with the DSP. Although trial 1 removed the nits and trial 2 left the nits, there was no difference between the trials in outcome measures. The nits can be left in place because the 3 weekly applications of the DSP lotion kill all potentially hatching lice before they can become contagious, fertile, adult lice. Meinking et al9 also reported finding no benefit of nit removal during treatment with a pediculicide.
Physicians may also be surprised that, in this study, a high cure rate was obtained with minimal household cleaning. Parents were not advised to vacuum any floors, put away any plush toys during treatment, or wash laundry daily. Lice are mainly transmitted from child to child via close contact of the children's heads during play.27 The environment and fomites play minor roles in lice transmission.23,28 There is now growing evidence that viable, contagious, head lice are rarely found in the environment; therefore, cleaning efforts aimed at removing them are of minimal usefulness.15,2931 There is no well-documented study showing that extensive cleaning measures are required for or even contribute to curing head lice.
The simplicity of this method was welcomed by both parents and children. Parents reported that head lice treatment without nit removal and without extensive household cleaning was not an overwhelming burden. Caregivers reported that children were much more cooperative during treatment with a plain comb than they had been during their prestudy treatment with a fine nit comb. Although the lotion must be left in place for at least 8 hours to be effective, in practice it typically was left in place for
24 hours, until the next day's bath. Patients typically underwent application 1 day, attended school the next morning with it dry in their hair, and waited until bath time the next day to remove it by washing their hair with their usual shampoo. After the DSP lotion was dried in the scalp, the lotion was not visible, and the hair could be styled as usual. Treated children went to school with their hair looking the same as usual.
These results suggest that a DSP lotion can offer a solution to the widespread reports of head lice that are resistant to conventional pediculicides. The majority of patients in this trial reported their lice to be resistant to a wide variety of conventional and alternative pediculicides (Table 1), but these patients were cured with the DSP lotion. The 5 patients who were not cured with the 3 applications allowed in the protocol were all cured by completing a total of 4 applications. There were no cases of DSP treatment failure in this study.
DSP lotions may not be hampered by the evolution of drug-resistant lice, as would be expected for neurotoxic pediculicides.32 The latter agents act by targeting a specific molecule. If that molecule is mutated, then the louse becomes resistant to the neurotoxic pediculicide. Table 4 shows the decrease in neurotoxic pediculicide cure rates as reports of drug-resistant lice have appeared. DSP lotions target the entire exterior of the louse, by coating the louse and mechanically blocking the spiracles (breathing holes). Development of resistance would require complex changes in the breathing mechanism itself and would be unlikely to occur.
| ACKNOWLEDGMENTS |
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I thank the physicians and nurses of the following institutions for referring patients to participate in this study: Welch Road Pediatrics Group (Palo Alto, CA), Lucile Packard Hospital for Children at Stanford University Medical Center (Stanford, CA), Menlo Medical Clinic Department of Pediatrics (Menlo Park, CA), Palo Alto Medical Foundation Department of Pediatrics (Palo Alto, CA), and Kaiser Hospital Department of Pediatrics (Redwood City, CA). Critical review of the manuscript and suggested revisions were made by Rick Speare, PhD (James Cook University, Townsville, Australia), and Harry Morewitz, PhD (Tarzana, CA). I especially thank Jonathan Pearlman for the statistical analysis.
| FOOTNOTES |
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Reprint requests to (D.L.P.) Family Dermatology Medical Office, 1220 University Dr, Suite 203, Menlo Park, CA 94025. E-mail: nuvo{at}dpearlman.biz
Dr Pearlman owns issued US patents and pending foreign patents covering this technology.
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