lice need human blood to survive, so they will only leave the body to move from one person to another. They crawl from hair to hair, they can’t fly or jump.
How do you get pubic lice?
any form of lice can be passed on easily and you can get them if you:
- Are in close contact with the body of someone who has lice – most commonly sexual contact, including vaginal, anal or oral sex.
- Hug and kiss someone who has lice.
- Share clothes, towels and bedding – although this is much less common.
HIV and sexual health.
- lice don’t carry other diseases, and although they feed on blood, pubic lice cannot pass on HIV or other STIs.
If you’re worried about HIV infection, find out everything you need to know in our HIV Transmission and Prevention section
What do symptoms look like?
It can be several weeks before any symptoms appear.
Symptoms for women and men include:
- itching – the most common symptom – and usually worse at night
- inflammation and irritation caused by scratching
- black powder in your underwear
- blue spots or small spots of blood on your skin, such as on your thighs or lower abdomen (caused by lice bites).
Can I get tested for lice?
Yes – lice are usually easy to diagnose. At Mens Health Clinics situated at 132 Fox Street, Marshalltown, Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa, We can examine you to look for signs of the lice or their eggs.
Whether you can see the lice and their eggs or not, don’t have sex or close body contact with other people until you and your current sexual partner/s have finished your treatment and have been checked to make sure the lice have gone.
Complications caused by lice
Occasionally, a pubic infestation can lead to minor complications, such as skin or eye problems.
- Scratching can lead to an infection such as impetigo (a bacterial skin infection) or furunculosis (boils on the skin).
- Eye infections, such as conjunctivitis, and eye inflammation, such as blepharitis, can sometimes develop if your eyelashes have been infested .
- Untreated, long-standing infestations can cause you to feel generally unwell.