Young People's Guide to
Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs)
and AIDS/HIV Disease
Table of Contents
PUBIC LICE ('Crabs')
Summary
- Very small (1/8th inch) gray to brown animals that live in the public hair and cause itching.
- Easily treated with a medicine that is put directly on the pubic hair.
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What are pubic lice?
Pubic lice are very small (about 1/8th inch in diameter) creatures that live in the pubic hair and cause a lot of itching.
They are not a serious sexually transmitted disease but they can cause a lot of discomfort.
The little bugs have claws that hold on to the pubic hairs and they feed off the infected persons skin. If you have sex with a person who has pubic lice, some of
the bugs may be spread to you. They can also fall off a person who is infected with
them and land on towels, bed sheets or blankets, or clothes. Therefore, crabs may
be spread by sheets, towels or by sharing clothes but it is most commonly spread by sex.
How are they diagnosed?
A person usually finds out that they have pubic lice by actually seeing them. Typically
the person will have been feeling a lot of itching in the pubic hair area and they
may have noticed some tiny red spots on their underwear. These are waste products
from the crabs. The pubic lice are hard to see since they are small (about 1/16th to 1/8th of an inch in diameter) but they are visible to most people with good eyesight. If
you pull one off the skin and place it on a white sheet of paper, they do look like
little crabs. If you examine yourself very closely, a person may also see the pubic
lice eggs which are very small lumps attached to the bottom of the pubic hair shafts.
How are they treated?
Pubic lice are treated with a shampoo or a lotion(lindane) that is applied directly
to the pubic hair. The shampoo only has to be left on the hair for five minutes and
then rinsed off. The lotion should be left on for about twelve hours before being
rinsed off. After treatment, it is necessary to change clothes and bed sheets and towels
as the bugs may live on these for a couple of days and re infect a person.
Are there serious complications of pubic lice?
There are usually not serious complications of crabs but occasionally they may become
infected with other germs since the crabs live on the skin and cause small but open
sores which may allow these other germs to enter. Public lice is an STD that may
be spread from person to person even if condoms are used properly since they live in the
pubic hair which is not protected by the condom.
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