What is scabies?

Dr. Luong Truong Son, former Deputy Director of Ho Chi Minh City Insect Parasite Malaria, said scabies is a common skin disease.

The disease is caused by a parasite on the skin called Sarcoptes scabiei , sometimes called the itch mite. The disease is common in the spring and summer and is caused by scabies, male scabies do not cause disease because they usually die after sex.

Scabies is caused by unclean hygiene, clothing, skin contact when having sex with a sick person or in a group, such as new recruits, prisons, and densely populated areas. In underdeveloped countries, inadequate nutrition conditions and poor hygiene are contagious. About 300 million people worldwide suffer from scabies every year.

The scabies has 8 feet, about 0.25 mm in diameter.(Photo: On Health).

Scabies is known for more than 2,500 years, from ancient Roman times. At that time, the Romans used the term scabies to refer to any skin disease that caused itching. It was not until the 17th century that Giovanni Cosimo Bonomo discovered that Sarcoptes scabiei was the cause of scabies .

The female is oval shaped, about 0.25 mm in diameter, visible to the eye as a mobile white spot. Female scabies has 8 legs, two front legs have cupping tubes, two hind legs are fluffy, head has a hose to suck food. The entire life cycle of scabies lasts 30 days if residing in the epidermis.

Scabies parasites in the epidermis layer of the epidermis, burrowing burrow at night, laying eggs during the day. Every day scabies lay 1-5 eggs, 72-96 hours hatching into eggs. After 5 to 6 molting within 20-25 days, the scabies matures, crawls out of the cave, copulates and continues to tunnel, laying new eggs. About 10% of beans become mature scabies.

Female scabies proliferate, proliferate very quickly. Under favorable conditions, they can lay 150 million in 3 months and die after laying all their eggs. At night, the scabies crawl out of the cave looking for male scabies. Therefore, this is the most itchy, most contagious moment of itching that causes you to scratch the scabies around. Scabies dies 4 days after leaving the host.

There are many types of scabies, there are species that cause disease in humans, types that cause disease in animals such as horses, sheep, dogs, cats, etc. Scabies that cause scabies for animals can also cause scabies in humans.

Scabies appears in the fingers, hands, around the navel . (Photo: WebMD).

The incubation period of 2-40 days with numerous blisters on the body. Acne is usually small, scattered, not clustered. The cave pathway caused by the scabies mussel in the horny layer is a zigzag curve 2-3 cm long, white or gray. Other injuries such as itching scratches, scrapes, blisters, blisters, pustules .

Lesions usually on the palms of the fingers, between the fingers, the wrists of the wrists, the anterior edge of the armpits, around the navel, buttocks, especially men appear on the glans, body of the penis. Women suffer from nipples, children on heels, soles of the feet. Scabies rarely causes head injuries.

Clinical forms such as simple scabies only have cavernous lines, blisters. Infected scabies with lesions of scabies, pustules caused by streptococcal infections, staphylococcus can experience acute glomerulonephritis complications. Scabies complications of dermatitis, eczema caused by rubbing, scratching for a long time; bacterial scabies with acute glomerulonephritis complications; Norwegian scabies (Norwegian), scabies mites are different from normal scabies which cause damage under the nails, face, head. Scabies is rare, often seen in people with weakened immune systems such as AIDS patients, Down syndrome, people with schizophrenia.

To treat, need to kill scabies and prevent reinfection, drug treatment as directed by a dermatologist. Patients should be detected early, treated early when there are no complications. If scabies is complicated by eczema or impetigo, the person must treat eczema and impetigo before treating it. After treatment of scabies, the dark spots on the skin due to scratching will fade over time. There is no medicine to treat bruises.

In addition, people living with patients need treatment, combined with prevention of spread of diseases such as isolation, hygiene of the living campus, not sharing clothes, personal belongings to avoid spreading the disease.