Pubic lice are usually diagnosed by visual identification of the adult lice, the eggs or empty egg sacs. Your doctor may use a piece of sticky tape to pick up lice for examination. Occasionally, they may look at the lice under a microscope to make the diagnosis.
If you have pubic lice (crabs), you may experience intense itching in your genital region. Pubic lice can spread to other areas with coarse body hair, including the: Legs. Chest.
Pubic lice will not go away without treatment. If you're sure you have pubic lice, you may be able to get treatment from a pharmacist.
Pruritus (severe itching) in hairy areas, especially pubic hair. Irritated skin that may be bloody or red from lice bites. Specks of black lice droppings in your underwear. Small white dots on pubic hair that are hard to remove (these are lice eggs).
Using a magnifying glass can help, or a nurse or doctor can look for them with a microscope. You can still have pubic lice even if you don't see any crabs or eggs. If you're itching a lot or you just think you might have crabs, it's a good idea to get checked out by a nurse or doctor.
They can also be spread through contact with the clothing and bedding of someone with crabs. Animals cannot get or spread pubic lice. If left untreated, the affected area will continue to itch. Repeated scratching of the infested area can result in other serious skin infections.
All hairy areas of the body should be thoroughly checked and treated because lice can move away from treated areas to other hairy parts of the body. Shaving won't get rid of pubic lice.
A lice-killing lotion containing 1% permethrin or a mousse containing pyrethrins and piperonyl butoxide can be used to treat pubic (“crab”) lice.
Usually, the symptoms of pubic lice start about 5 days after you get them. Some people never have symptoms, or they think the symptoms are caused by something else (like a rash). The most common symptom of pubic lice is intense itching in your pubic area.
Applying topical creams or lotions containing permethrin (for example, Lyclear cream or Quellada lotion) to the whole body from neck to toes is the most commonly recommended treatment. You do not need to apply the cream to the hair on your head. See your doctor, pharmacist or sexual health centre for further advice.
Common causes of genital itching include contact dermatitis, jock itch, scabies, yeast infection, and folliculitis. Your healthcare provider can help you determine the cause and point you to the best treatment and prevention strategies.
Eggs (nits) are laid on a hair shaft. Females will lay approximately 30 eggs during their 3-4 week life span.
Getting pubic lice doesn't mean you're dirty — it has nothing to do with hygiene or cleanliness. Anybody can get pubic lice if they have close, personal contact with someone who has them. About 3 million people in the U.S. get pubic lice every year.
Trichobacteriosis (formerly trichomycosis) is an asymptomatic infection of the axillary and less commonly the pubic hair shafts caused by Corynebacterium flavescens and other coryneform species. A bacterial biofilm encases the hair, creating yellow or white concretions distributed along the length of the hair shaft.
Lice eggs (nits) are often easier to see than live lice. They look like tiny yellow or white dots attached to the pubic hair, close to the skin. Nits can look like dandruff. But you can't pick them off with your fingernail or brush them away.
Removing pubic hair will only work if you remove all other hair with it, and even then it's considered to be an ineffective way of treating crabs by doctors. The good news is that pubic lice are fairly easy to get rid of, they do not transmit diseases, and they will not make you more susceptible to other STDs.
Under the microscope, pubic lice look like tiny crabs. To the naked eye, they appear to be pale gray, but get darker when swollen with blood. They attach themselves and their eggs to pubic hair, underarm hair, eyelashes, and eyebrows. Their eggs are white and are deposited in small clumps near the hair roots.
Signs of Lice
Some symptoms of lice are a tingling feeling on your scalp, intense itching, and possible bite marks near your neck, ears, or scalp. If you notice any of the symptoms you should check yourself for lice.
Pubic lice are small, crab‑like insects that are grey or brown‑red. They live in pubic hair, but can be on other body parts with hair (like the chest, armpit, face, eyelashes). Crabs can live for up to 24 hours on bedding, towels, and clothes.
Recognizing the signs and symptoms of public lice can help you identify when you should get treated. You'll know you have crabs if you see a louse or lice, are itchy, or see spots of blood or black lice feces in your pubic area.
The signs and symptoms you may have pubic lice are: itching around your genitals or back passage, especially at night when the lice are most active. tiny blue spots around your genitals. spots of blood or fine, gritty debris in your underwear.
Razor burn can lead to an itchy pubic region in many people. Cutting the hairs in this area may cause irritation, which can be worse if a person shaves too fast or uses a dull razor.