Medical Offices of Manhattan’s own Dr. Karnika Kapoor was recently quoted in a Livescience.com article about scabies. She was quoted as saying:
“Transmission of scabies is usually from person to person by direct contact,” said Karnika Kapoor, a primary care physician at Medical Offices of Manhattan. “Transmission from parents to children, and especially from mother to infant, is routine. In typical conditions, mites can survive off a host for 24 to 36 hours.”
“Good timing and adequate communication are essential to the success of scabies treatment,” Kapoor said. “A medical professional may suspect scabies if the patient has one or more of the following symptoms:
Widespread itching that is worse at night.
Itchy eruptions with characteristic lesions and distribution.
Other household members with similar symptoms.
The doctor also may examine a sample of the patient’s skin under a microscope, to look for eggs or mites in the skin.”
“When scabies has been diagnosed, treatment is simple.” Kapoor said, “There are two main methods for treating it. One way is to apply a cream containing an insecticide called permethrin. Patients massage it thoroughly into the skin from the neck to the soles of the feet, including areas under the fingernails and toenails,” Kapoor said. “The other method is to take an oral prescription medication called ivermectin,” she added.
To read the full article, click here.
