Scabies is a highly contagious skin infestation. It caused an itchy, red rash to form on the skin. It is caused by the Sarcoptes scabiei, which is a kind of mite. The diseases is also called ‘sweetie’ or ‘sweety’ infection in Nigeria. The mite enters under the skin to lay eggs after living on the skin for months. It can be contracted by coming in contact with someone that has the disease. The mites that cause the disease can be passed on through coming in contact with things like the clothes or beddings of an infected person.
Scabies affects an estimated 150 million people at any given time with an estimated 300 million cases a year, making it a very prevalent condition. It can affect anyone irrespective of age, gender, or race. It usually spreads in areas like the home, school, nursing facilities, and so on. This article will discuss the causes, symptoms and treatment of scabies or sweetie infection in Nigeria.
Treating scabies is easy as there are medications available for that. But it is important that you are able to know that you have scabies, to begin with. This is why early detection is important. This is possible by recognising some of the symptoms of the condition.
Symptoms of Scabies
There are some symptoms commonly associated with scabies. These symptoms usually appear as much as six weeks after being exposed to scabies. Some of the common symptoms include
- Red bumps/blisters around the body. These bumps or blisters appear in small dots that may form tracks on the skin. They can appear in almost all parts of the body, including between the fingers, on the soles of the feet, knees, buttocks, waist, inner elbows, around the groin, genital area, around the breasts, and so on.
- Itching, which usually gets worse at night. This can force the person to constantly scratch the affected areas, even if it is advised against.
As you can tell, these symptoms can cause great discomfort, especially the itching part. That is why people often seek treatment immediately.
Scabies Treatments
Treating scabies involved using special topicals or oral drugs and other forms of medications, usually recommended by a dermatologist. There are over-the-counter medications that one can find but they are not always effective against scabies. That is why meeting with a dermatologist or doctor works best because they would be able to carry out a test to confirm if what you have is indeed scabies and the kind of drug that would work best on your skin. The most common drugs used in the treatment of scabies or sweetie disease in Nigeria are drugs like permethrin cream, and oral doses of ivermectin. However, you must talk to your doctor first before any undergoing any treatment.
Prevention of Scabies
Even though treating scabies is a bit easy, it is not a condition you want to have to deal with. That is why preventing it is more important and here is one thing you should remember all the time.
Avoid Touching Someone Who Has It
The most important thing is to avoid touching or coming in direct physical contact with someone who has the infestation. Also, avoid using clothing or beddings owned by that person.
If you have been taken care of someone with scabies, you should make sure you seek treatment when they do, even when you do not have any of the symptoms associated with the disease.
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