Doctors say kids no longer need to miss school during head lice outbreaks

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BOSTON -- For many years, children with lice have been told to stay home until they are "nit free" but a leading group of pediatricians says this is unnecessary and even possibly harmful.

The American Academy of Pediatrics has updated its guidance on head lice for the first time since 2015.

They say head lice outbreaks are not a health hazard nor a sign of poor hygiene. Instead, they are an "unpleasant part of the human experience," can be successfully managed, and are no reason for a child to miss school.

The group also says that head lice screening programs in schools are not an effective way to manage the problem and may, in turn, stigmatize children.

Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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