Head Lice & Removal

Head lice / louse

The head louse (Pediculus humanus capitis) is an obligate ectoparasite of humans that causes head lice infestation (pediculosis capitis).^[1]

Head lice are wingless insects spending their entire lives on the human scalp and feeding exclusively on human blood.^[1] Humans are the only known hosts of this specific parasite, while chimpanzees host a closely related species, Pediculus schaeffi. Other species of lice infest most orders of mammals and all orders of birds,^[1] as well as other parts of the human body.

Lice differ from other hematophagic ectoparasites such as fleas in spending their entire lifecycle on a host.^[2] Head lice cannot fly, and their short, stumpy legs render them incapable of jumping, or even walking efficiently on flat surfaces.^[2]

The non-disease-carrying head louse differs from the related disease-carrying body louse (Pediculus humanus humanus) in preferring to attach eggs to scalp hair rather than to clothing. The two subspecies are morphologically almost identical, but do not normally interbreed, although they will do so in laboratory conditions. From genetic studies, they are thought to have diverged as subspecies about 30,000–110,000 years ago, when many humans began to wear a significant amount of clothing.^[3][4] A much more distantly related species of hair-clinging louse, the pubic or crab louse (Pthirus pubis), also infests humans. It is visually different from the other two species and is much closer in appearance to the lice which infest other primates.^[5] Lice infestation of any part of the body is known as pediculosis.^[6]

Head lice (especially in children) have been, and still are, subject to various eradication campaigns. Unlike body lice, head lice are not the vectors of any known diseases. Except for rare secondary infections that result from scratching at bites, head lice are harmless, and they have been regarded by some as essentially a cosmetic rather than a medical problem. Head lice infestations might be beneficial in helping to foster a natural immune response against lice which helps humans in defense against the far more dangerous body louse, which is capable of transmission of dangerous diseases.^[7]

Mesquite

Mesquite is a city in Clark County, Nevada, United States, adjacent to the Arizona state line and 80 miles (130 km) northeast ofLas Vegas on Interstate 15. As of 2015, the United States Census estimates that the city had a population of 17,496.^[5] The city is located in the Virgin River valley adjacent to the Virgin Mountains in the northeastern part of the Mojave Desert. It is home to a growing retirement community, as well as several casino resorts and golf courses.

Mesquite was settled by Mormon pioneers in 1880, who called it Mesquite Flat. The community was finally established on the third attempt after having been flooded out from the waters of the Virgin River. The name was later shortened to Mesquite, and the city was incorporated in May 1984. Mesquite, like nearby Bunkerville, had its origins in farming. The Peppermill Mesquite casino, which opened in the 1970s, drove Mesquite’s diversified economy. [The Western Village Travel Plaza opened in the 1950s, later owned by the Peppermill [1].] The city incorporated in 1984 and established a master development plan during the early 1990s.^[2] In the mid-1990s, more casinos opened.^[6] By 2006, Mesquite was one of the fastest-growing small towns in the United States, though the late-2000s recession led to the closure of both the Mesquite Star and Oasis (formerly The Peppermill) casinos.^[2]

Mesquite occupies the northeast corner of Clark County and extends north into the southeast corner of Lincoln County. The eastern border of the city is the Arizona state line. The city is in the Virgin River valley, occupying the northern side of the river. The city lies adjacent to the Virgin Mountains in the northeastern Mojave Desert near the southern mouth of the Virgin River Gorge.