Rivendell school

Dear Parent/Guardian:
Your child has been sent home today because he/she was found to have head lice. There is no
need for alarm. Head lice are a common problem among school children and can happen to
anyone. They are not a sign of poor health habits or poor hygiene. We provide the following
information so that you can assist in controlling the condition by following the procedure to treat
the head lice. Your help is the key to eliminating lice from our school as soon as possible!

Lice are highly contagious. Signs and symptoms of a lice infestation may include itching and
irritations of the scalp. The main symptom is an “itchy” scalp. They can also cause decreased
attention span in school as well as irritability. If you look closely at the scalp (a flashlight and
magnifying glass may help), you will see small grayish-white eggs attached to the hair shaft,
especially at the nape of the neck and behind the ears. These eggs (nits) are small, about the size
of a pinhead, and resemble dandruff. Nits are attached to the hair shaft with a cement-like
substance and are difficult to remove. Dandruff, on the other hand, is easily brushed from the
hair.
Head lice are usually transmitted through:
1. Close personal contact with a person who is infested with the lice or through the use of shared
combs, hair brushes, and other grooming aids.
2. Sharing caps, hats, scarves, or coats or touching of these items with similar items at school, a
friend’s hour or other places.
3. Nits may be rubbed off on cloth-backed furniture and then may make their way onto another
person who subsequently sits on the same furniture.
An informational sheet describing the necessary treatment for head lice is attached. Also attached
are two treatment verification forms. These must be completed and signed before your
student may return to school. You may wish to consult with your primary care physician
concerning treatment for head lice.
All these measures are necessary to prevent others in your family from getting lice, as well as
keeping the school from becoming a place in which lice are spread from family to family.
Thank you again for your cooperation in this important Health concern. Please do your part to
prevent further spread by examining your child daily for the next two weeks and on a regular
basis thereafter. If you have any questions, please call me.
Sincerely,
Byron List
Headmaster
TREATMENT OF HEAD LICE
The following is a suggested procedure you may wish to use in treating head lice with your child
and decontaminating personal items as well as the home environment. More information can be
obtained by your physician, and the Arlington County Health Department or the CDC website


TREATMENT OF THE STUDENT
1. Remove your child’s clothing and place him/her in a bathtub or shower stall. Place their
clothing in a plastic bag and seal the bag until the clothes can be washed.
2. Apply head louse treatment according to your physician’s instructions or the label instructions
on the medicated shampoo bottle. There are medicated liquids available for head lice – RID,
Kwell, etc. Kwell* is available only by prescription. RID and others may be purchased without a
prescription at the pharmacy. There is no published evidence that indicates that one product is
superior to another.
3. Remove nits with a very fine toothed comb. A comb that is designed specifically to comb out
nits is best. (Often the combs that come in the box with the over-the-counter treatments for lice
are inadequate.) It may also be necessary to hand-pick the lice from the base of the hair to
ensure that all nits are removed. Removing all nits is essential for the eradication of head lice.
4. Have your child put on clean clothing after the treatment.
5. Repeat the treatment in 7 to 10 days. While the products mentioned above rapidly kill
crawling lice, they may not kill all the nits (lice eggs). Repeating the treatment in 7 to 10 days
kills the newly hatched lice. (The 7 to 10 day interval is the same as the incubation period for the
louse’s egg).
6. All family members and close friends of your child should be examined. Family members who
have evidence of infestations (crawling forms or nits) should be treated. Siblings or parents who
share a bed with a known infested child should be treated whether or not there is evidence of
infestation at the time of the examination.
DECONTAMINATION OF PERSONAL ITEMS AND ENVIRONMENT
Heat is lethal to lice and their eggs. Many personal items can be disinfected by machine washing
in HOT water and/or drying using the hot cycle of the dryer. Lice eggs are killed in 5 minutes at
125 degrees Fahrenheit. Most home hot water heaters keep water at about 140 degrees when the
heat selector is set at either medium or high. However, some hot water heaters are not able to
sustain the 140 degrees when several loads of laundry are done one after the other, or when other
demands of hot water are done simultaneously. To maintain the water at 140 degrees, or higher,
allow time between loads of laundry or other demands on your hot water heater. If total reliance
is placed in the clothes dryer for disinfestations, dry articles for at least 20 minutes on the
highest heat setting possible for your dryer. Some non-washable articles may be disinfested in
the dryer, provided the heat will not harm the item.
1. Machine-wash all washable clothing and bed linens that have been in contact with your child
within the previous 3 days.
2. Personal articles of clothing or bedding that cannot be washed or dried may be dry cleaned or
simply left in a plastic bag that is sealed for a period of at least 10 days.
3. Combs, brushes, and similar items, can be disinfected by soaking the item in one of the head
lice liquid solutions for 1 hour or by soaking the item in a pan of water heated to about 150
degrees Fahrenheit for 5 – 10 minutes.
4. To break the infestation/re-infestation cycle, spray LI-Ban* (a lice spray) on inanimate objects
that cannot be either laundered or dry-cleaned.

NOTIFICATION OF OTHER PARENTS/GUARDIANS
Parents/Guardians of your child’s closest friends should be notified that their child may have
been exposed to lice and may be infested since they play together. This is particularly important
if the children have slept together or participated in activities that involve frequent body contact,
such as wrestling, ballet classes, football, etc.
`
RETURNING TO SCHOOL
Your child may return to school the morning after he/she has been treated with head louse
shampoo and had all visible nits removed. Parents/Guardians MUST complete the
TREATMENT FORM with the box top attached, prior to your child being allowed to re-enter
school. Parents need to bring the form and their child to school the day of re-entry. Students will
be examined for live head lice and nits prior to being allowed to return to school. Students with
live head lice or visible nits will NOT be allowed to return to school and will be sent home.
FDA APPROVED ANTI-PEDICULOSIS PRODUCTS 9/09
I. Lindane-generic
III. Permethrin-generic
IV. Pyrethrims/Piperonyl Butoxide
(base)-generic
II. Malathion-generic
Rivendell School
HEAD LICE (PEDICULOSIS) TREATMENT FORM
FIRST TREATMENT

(Please attach box cover of shampoo to form)

Date: ________________________________________________________

Student: _____________________________________________________

This is to notify the school that the above student has been given a medicated
shampoo treatment.

With (Name of Medicated Shampoo): ATTACH BOX COVER TO FORM

On the following date: _________________________________________
I have attempted to remove all visible nits and to do the necessary treatment
of the home environment. I understand that the medicated shampoo
treatment must be repeated in 7 - 10 days and I will continue to examine my
child and remove all visible nits in the interim prior to the time the second
treatment is completed.

Signature of Parent/Guardian: __________________________________

Date signed: __________________________________________________
***Attach box cover of shampoo to form
(Parent must accompany their child on the day they return to school)
Rivendell School
Head Lice (Pediculosis) Treatment Form
SECOND TREATMENT
(Attach box cover of shampoo to form or note that the same product has been
used as was used for the first treatment)

Date: ________________________________________________________

Student: _____________________________________________________

This is to notify the school that the above student has been given the Second
medicated shampoo treatment.

With (Name of Medicated Shampoo): ATTACH BOX COVER TO FORM

On the following date: _________________________________________

All visible nits have been removed. I have completed the necessary treatment
of the home environment and will continue to monitor my child for potential
nits during the coming week.

Signature of Parent/Guardian: __________________________________

Date signed: __________________________________________________

***Attach box top cover of shampoo to form
(Parent must accompany their child on the day they return to school)

Source: http://humanities-cromartie.rivendellschool.net/modules/groups/homepagefiles/cms/1654555/File/For%20Parents/Handbook%20&%20Guidelines/Lice%20eradication%20guideline%20and%20form.pdf