It can take a long time to get rid of head lice. People have reported dealing with outbreaks for months and even years. This is because most treatments don’t provide the one-and-done solution parents are looking for.
Over-the-counter (OTC) lice medications, for example, call for an initial application of a lice shampoo followed by several days of checking and combing out lice and eggs, then applying a second round of the lice shampoo.
OTC medications often fail for a couple of reasons. First, most lice in the United States are now immune to the chemical insecticides, called pyrethroids, used by the most popular products, according to multiple studies. Second, even if the chemicals are effective, there is a significant human factor in successful lice treatment. You have to remove every louse and egg (nit) in order for treatment to be successful, and both are very difficult to see and remove. So, people often spend weeks, months, or years dealing with head lice.
There’s also the fact that OTC products, even if effective, only kill live lice and do nothing to rid the head of eggs, or nits. The nits must still be manually combed out and removed or they will hatch, and the head lice will return.
Also, depending on how a child contracted head lice in the first place, there is no guarantee that the source of the problem has been eliminated. You get lice primarily from other people, so if your child is spending time with the same children at school, day care, sports programs, or other activities, he or she may be exposed to lice over and over again.
There are new products available that remove much or all of the risk of long-term lice infestations. Lice Clinics of America has introduced the AirAllé device, an FDA-cleared, clinically proven medical device that is guaranteed to kill live lice and eggs in a single session that lasts about an hour.
The AirAllé device takes a novel non-chemical approach to killing lice and eggs. It uses warm air to systematically dehydrate lice and eggs, eliminating both the need for insecticides and the need for weeks of combing and checking for lice. Treatment with the AirAllé medical device is available at Lice Clinics of America treatment centers throughout the United States and in 20 additional countries.
Lice Clinics of America has also introduced lice prevention products in the form of conditioners, sprays, and shampoos that can help protect children (and anyone else) from getting lice in the first place. The Lice Clinics of America shampoos, sprays, and conditioners use a scent that is perfectly fine for humans but not for lice. These lice repellants can be used daily.
Lice Clinics of America with the AirAllé medical device and its home treatment products represent the largest network of professional lice treatment centers in the world. The products are the result of more than a decade of scientific research at the University of Utah and elsewhere. There are more than 150 clinics in the United States and a hundred more throughout the world.
