Prevalence of head louse infestation in primary school children in Kangwon-do, Korea

Brief Communication


Korean J Parasitol. 1993 Mar;31(1):67-69. English. Published online Mar 20, 1994. http://dx.doi.org/10.3347/kjp.1993.31.1.67
Copyright © 1993 by The Korean Society for Parasitology


Prevalence of head louse infestation in primary school children in Kangwon-do, Korea
Sun Huh,^*¹Ki-Soo Pai,²Seung Joon Lee,¹Kyung-Jin Kim,¹ and Nam-Ho Kim¹
¹Department of Parasitology, College of Medicine, Hallym University, Chunchon 200-702, Korea.
²Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, Yonsei University, Seoul 120-752, Korea.

Received December 31, 1992; Accepted February 10, 1993.
Abstract
We tried to reveal the prevalence rates of the head louse infestation in school children in Kangwon-do, Korea in December 1990. A total of 912 children in four primary schools was examined. The positive rate for adults and/or nits of Pediculus humanus capitis was 37.2%. One school was followed-up without specific intervention. There was no significant change of the prevalence rate 6 months after the first examination from 66.0% to 57.3%. We could see the persistent infestation rate if there was no intervention. We are emphasizing the significance of worm positive rate because it represents the potentiality of active transmission.

Tables


	Table 1 Head louse infestation rates in school children in Kangwon-do (1990)


	Table 2 Head louse infestation by grade and sex


	Table 3 Worm positive rate (P_worm) according to the school


	Table 4 Follow-up course of head louse infestation in Naedok primary school children

References


1.	Pai KS. [Head louse infestation among girls in an orphanage and women in a mental hospital and mass-delousing with bioallethrin (PARA aerosol)]. Korean J Parasitol 1992;30(1):49–52.

2.	Pai KS, Park MS, Lee YS, Kim DH, Chung KS, Lee KY, Kim PK, Kim KY, Yong TS, Ree HI, et al. [The prevalence of head louse infestation among urban and rural children in Korea]. Korean J Parasitol 1989;27(4):271–275.