Scabies: Symptoms and Causes

scabies

Scabies

Last Reviewed : 12/25/2020

Scabies, known as the seven-year itch, is a contagious skin infestation by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei. The most common symptoms are severe itchiness and a pimple-like rash. Occasionally tiny burrows may be seen in the skin. When first infected, usually two to six weeks are required before symptoms occur. If a person develops a second infection later in life, symptoms may begin within a day. These symptoms can be present across most of the body or just certain areas such as the wrists, between fingers, or along the waistline. The head may be affected, but this is typically only in young children. The itch is often worse at night. Scratching may cause skin breakdown and an additional bacterial infection of the skin.

Scabies is caused by infection with the female mite Sarcoptes scabiei. The mites burrow into the skin to live and deposit eggs. The symptoms of scabies are due to an allergic reaction to the mites. Often only between ten and fifteen mites are involved in an infection. Scabies is most often spread during a relatively long period of direct skin contact with an infected person such as that which may occur during sex. Spread of disease may occur even if the person has not developed symptoms yet. Crowded living conditions such as those found in child care facilities, group homes, and prisons increase the risk of spread. Areas with a lack of access to water also have higher rates of disease. Crusted scabies is a more severe form of the disease. It typically only occurs in those with a poor immune system and people may have millions of mites, making them much more contagious. In these cases spread of infection may occur during brief contact or via contaminated objects. The mite is very small and usually not directly visible. Diagnosis is based on the signs and symptoms.

We researched this topic for you and found the following best online resources. They are categorized into basic, advanced, and research level based on the extent of information you need. You will be taken to the respective websites by pressing on the links below.

Basic information:

http://www.healthline.com/health/scabies health line scabies

http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/ss/slideshow-scabies-overview web md scabies

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/scabies/basics/definition/con-20023488 mayo clinic scabies

https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/contagious-skin-diseases/scabies american academy of dermatology scabies

http://www.aocd.org/?page=scabies american osteopathic college of dermatology scabies

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/scabies/pages/introduction.aspx nhs uk scabies

http://kidshealth.org/en/kids/scabies.html kids health scabies

https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/scabies better health scabies

https://www.healthychildren.org/english/health-issues/conditions/skin/pages/scabies.aspx healthy children scabies

http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases_conditions/hic_scabies cleveland clinic scabies

http://www.merckmanuals.com/professional/dermatologic-disorders/parasitic-skin-infections/scabies merck manuals (professional version) scabies

http://www.skinsight.com/adult/scabies.htm skin sight scabies

Advanced information:

http://www.medicinenet.com/scabies/article.htm medicine net scabies

http://www.emedicinehealth.com/scabies/article_em.htm emedicine health scabies

http://patient.info/in/health/scabies-leaflet patient scabies

http://www.dermnetnz.org/arthropods/scabies.html dermnet nz scabies

http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1109204-overview medscape scabies

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/16961.php medical news today scabies: causes, symptoms, and treatments

https://web.stanford.edu/class/humbio103/parasites2004/scabies/scabies%20home.htm scabies

http://www.uptodate.com/contents/scabies-beyond-the-basics upto date patient information: scabies (beyond the basics)

http://medent.usyd.edu.au/fact/scabies.html scabies

http://www.aafp.org/afp/2012/0915/p535.html pediculosis and scabies: a treatment update by karen gunning, pharmd et al., am fam physician. 2012 sep 15;86(6):535-541.

Research:

karthikeyan k. crusted scabies. indian j dermatol venereol leprol [serial online] 2009 [cited 2016 jul 24];75:340-7. available from: http://www.ijdvl.com/text.asp?2009/75/4/340/53128

http://europepmc.org/backend/ptpmcrender.fcgi?accid=pmc4601791&blobtype=pdf : edison l, beaudoin a, goh l, introcaso ce, martin d, dubray c, et al. (2015) scabies and bacterial superinfection among american samoan children, 2011–2012. plos one 10(10): e0139336. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0139336

gutte rm. bullous scabies in an adult: a case report with review of literature. indian dermatol online j [serial online] 2013 [cited 2016 jul 24];4:311-3. available from: http://www.idoj.in/text.asp?2013/4/4/311/120654

lanjewar dn, bhatia vo, lanjewar sd. pathologic lesions in children with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome an autopsy study of 11 cases from mumbai, india. indian j pathol microbiol [serial online] 2016 [cited 2016 jul 24];59:166-71. available from: http://www.ijpmonline.org/text.asp?2016/59/2/166/182028

Scabies

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