Scabies

Scabies is a highly present parasitic disease Puerto Vallarta community and generates extremely annoying symptoms, this article you will find information that will help you better understand this disease and thus avoid it.

What is scabiosis?

It is a parasitic infection caused by a mite Sarcoptes scabiei who are able to infect anyone without import race or social stratum. These mites are tiny in size which makes them invisible to naked eye.

There are two types of scabies, classical and Crusted (also called Norway scabies). The classic is the most common form of the disease and in 10 to 15 mites are housed in the patient, instead, the crusted can hold millions of mites.

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How it’s Spread?

It is usually transmitted through direct and prolonged contact with the skin of an affected person. Among family members or sexual partners, the contagion is common. In the case of the crusted variant, it can be spread even wearing clothes, mattresses, pillows, etc. of the patient.

What symptoms do you have with scabies?

The main symptom is severe itching, in addition to the presence of erythematous papules from 2mm to 15mm in diameter. We can also find small meandering lesions. The areas with the highest frequency of affectation shown in the following image.

In the crusted variant, we observed large patches erythematous where the scabs characteristic of the infestation develop, in addition to nail abnormalities. In this case the itching usually be minimal or absent.

How it’s Diagnosed?

Diagnosis is usually clinical, based on the history of the characteristic signs and symptoms. It can be done by taking sample for analysis under a microscope, but not being a routine study does not it’s often used.

How is scabies treated?

Treatment is based on covering the following points:

• Eradicating mites
• Managing symptoms and complications
• Prophylaxis to people close to the patient
• Measures to minimize contagion or reinfection

Eradication can be achieved through topical medicines permecthrin or oral as ivermectin. For children and pregnant women permecthrin topica is the treatment of choice. There to consider that once the mites have been eradicated, symptoms such as itching can last several days even weeks.

The management of itching is done by antihistamines sedatives such as chlorphenamine or diphenhydramine, plus that secondaryly, by scratching the lesions, we can find bacterial infections treated by topical antibiotics.

Prophylaxis to family members or sexual partners will be the the same treatment that the affected person receives as they may be carriers of disease and no symptoms.

Measures to prevent contagion or re-infection are more applicable in cases of the crusted variant (which as already mentioned is very infrequent) and these measures are: the constant washing of affected areas, wash clothes and bedding with hot water and dry in a dryer with hi temperature, handling these with the use of protective gloves.

Now that you know a little more about scabies you can identify symptoms in time and thus go to your doctor early to avoid days and days of annoying itching. and if you want to know by learning more of the common diseases in Puerto Vallarta click on the link below

Source: http://uptodate.com