by Janet Smellie
Northern News Services

Debbie McIssac didn't get to bed very early on Monday night.

News that her daughters Allison, 2, and Autumn, 7, had become re-infested with head lice kept the career mother busy for the second time this winter. Instead of catching the latest Christmas special on TV, she scrubbed heads and washed linen, ridding her household of the pesky parasites that once again were making themselves at home.

McIssac, who just four weeks ago performed the time-consuming treatment of her children for head lice, admitted she was "quite frustrated" to have to go through the process all over again.

After contacting the Yellowknife Public Health Unit it was later discovered that Autumn had likely been infected at school and passed it on to her sister.

Head lice, tiny parasites that live exclusively in the human scalp, are quite common in school children. Children are more likely to pick up head lice, mainly because they are often in close contact with each other.

Karen Leidl, the health unit's nurse-in-charge, said that, while lice and the contagious skin disease impetigo are "very common" among young children, there is no cause for alarm and McIssac's case is definitely not out of the ordinary.

"We encourage parents to check their children. It's part of general child care. They can pick up lice in day care or at school. Lice will happen, but by parents taking precautionary measures you can prevent it."

Prevention is McIssac's hope, as well. She not only wants to make parents aware of how horrendous treatment can be, but also hopes they realize that it's up to them to monitor their children regularly.

"I started (treatment) at four and was at it until my husband came home around 11 p.m. It was awful, I was literally ticked off," McIssac said. She added that she spent Tuesday and Wednesday night treating herself, as her own scalp had become infected.

Wanda White, a community disease consultant with the Department of Health, said parents should constantly be on the lookout for symptoms.

"Close contact, friends sharing hats, crawling on the same bed, these can encourage it from spreading. If you've got lice in the family, you've got quite a bit of work ahead of you."

With three cases discovered in Autumn's classroom, McIssac admits she's hoping the parents of these children will take treatment seriously so her family can take an extended break from dealing with the creatures.

"There's no shame in having lice. There's a lot of myths behind it. People should be paying close attention to their kids for precautionary purposes ... believe me, it would be worth it."

How do they spread?

Heat produced by the body is required for heat lice to survive and their eggs (called nits) to hatch. Because lice cannot jump or fly, they are usually transmitted during direct personal contact, when the lice move quickly from one head to another.

What are the signs?

In most cases the first sign of an infestation is constant itching of the scalp. They spread very quickly, and the important thing is to treat them as soon as they hit to prevent further spreading. If an infestation has been reported in your child's school group, look for lice even if there is no obvious itch; some children don't experience any itching.

Difficult to see, because they are very small and they avoid light, their nits are small, almost white and oval in shape and can be found attached to individual hairs very close to the scalp.

What treatment works best?

According to the Yellowknife Public Health Unit, Nix (permethrin -- 1 per cent cream rinse) has been proven to be highly effective with a single application in killing both lice and nits.

Pamphlets are available from the health unit or through the school nurse.