Can you always see head lice?

[therailwaychildren]

Please MN, help me! DS is nearly 3, and his friend at his childminder's recently had head lice. I checked DS at the time with a head lice comb and conditioner and saw nothing. Checked again with conditioner a couple of days later - again nothing. Now he has started scratching his head but he has a flaky scalp so am wondering if it's just all the conditioner and poking about... So my question is: using a white head lice comb and combing thoroughly from the root, would I always be able to see something obvious if he had head lice? He hasn't had them before so I'm not really sure what I'm looking for, and all the treatments say "don't treat just in case". Aaargh.

Thanks in advance.

no, you can't always see them. baby ones, or nymphs are tiny and almost translucent. i would get a nitty gritty comb if you can, they are the rolls royce of nit combs, and google headlice so you can see what you're looking for.

Are you wiping the comb on a tissue after each comb through as well? If he had head lice you would see little lice on the comb or in the water or on the tissue.

Keep doing it though for a while as he may have eggs that hatch and then you will see the little blighters on the comb/tissue.

FWIW I keep getting dh to comb mine because I have a really itchy scalp since the first check and think I have got them. I think it is the combing and conditioner that has upset my scalp and made it itchy.

Thanks very much both - I will definitely get a nitty gritty comb this weekend, and will do the tissue wipe - oh, the glamour of parenting.

I know railway. Combing my dd's very long thick hair through when she had head lice was the very worst thing I have had to do as a parent so far. I can cope with poo, vomit, blood, etc but the head lice gave me the heebie jeebies big time and I am still scratching.

if he did have tiny headlice, you would find empty eggs attached to the hair shaft. the eggs are really hard to get off as they glue them on. this is why the nitty gritty is good as it has grooves which slice the eggs off.

i'm starting to scratch now just thinking about them

I have the same problem, don't know what I am looking for. But DS has got a dry flaky patch on his scalp that I have never noticed before? Could that be them? What colour are they ????

IME you definitely know you are seeing them if you see them. Dd had big dark dots of bugs and little tiny nymphs which I couldn't see until they appeared on the comb <a class="break-all" href="http://www.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=media.treehugger.com/assets/images/2011/10/head-lice-on-head.jpg&imgrefurl=www.treehugger.com/green-food/head-lice-the-latest-superbug-to-become-resistant-to-pesticides.html&h=305&w=468&sz=55&tbnid=QIY4OrtqF4rVXM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=138&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dhead%2Blice%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=head+lice&docid=neSIzbDlWPD8PM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=wFssT6XLOoaKhQe1rbDcCg&sqi=2&ved=0CHYQ9QEwAg&dur=916" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">bleurgh!

Ok, googling pics was a mistake, I am itching like crazy

Ha ha! Me too. I am Itchy McScratchy now.

Well, I do like to start the day by looking at some pictures of head lice - nothing like those pictures on DS, but I'll get the Nitty Gritty comb anyway. I do feel more reassured, if itchy. Thanks for all your help!

bane my existance
quick easy check.....wet bit paper.brush hair over it.if red spots appear o paper,theres something in there
not nice but effective way having a quick peep
hope that helps

Thanks liveinazoo. I bought the Nitty Gritty comb yesterday (and wow, that is one bad boy of a nit comb) and nothing to see when combing tonight - I'll remember the paper check, though, as it sounds very quick and easy. Good luck all with the struggle!