Overview
- The NHS advises that children with head lice do not need to be kept off school and can be treated without seeing a GP.
- GP guidance highlights wet combing with a fine-toothed detection comb on days 1, 5, 9 and 13, with a check on day 17 to catch newly hatched lice.
- Licensed medicated lotions and sprays are available from pharmacies, supermarkets and online, and some require a repeat application after seven days.
- The NHS warns that products containing permethrin, so‑called repellents, electric combs and plant or herbal oil remedies are unlikely to work.
- Superdrug reports a 21.2% rise in head lice spray sales as schools reopen, while clinicians note recurrences linked to missed eggs or reinfection, reinforcing checks and same‑day treatment for affected household contacts.