Abstract
Background:
Head louse pediculosis is a common problem among school-aged children. We assessed parental knowledge and practices about head louse infestations and factors contributing to the spread of head lice in families in Southeast Georgia.
Methods:
A self-administered questionnaire was completed by 197 parents, grandparents or guardians of school-aged children. Responses about participant’s demographics, knowledge about head lice, sources of information, treatment methods used, and behavioral practices that might contribute to head lice exposure and spread. Z-test or Chi-square test were used as appropriate, to identify population proportions across different variables with statistical significance (p-value) of < 0.05.
Results:
Most participants (89.3%) were residents of Coffee County, and self-identified as parents (83.9%) of children attending local schools. Majority (64.4%) were from low-income families and were not involved professionally with childcare, education or public health (79%). Respondents acknowledged great familiarity with head lice independently of their income, education or occupation; however, their responses about disease transmission potential of lice differed depending on their income and education. Participants relied on diverse information sources, although individuals with advanced degrees favored health professionals among their information sources. Eight-four participants reported a prior history of head louse pediculosis in their families, and 6 had ongoing infestations at the time of survey. Financial and educational conditions of these families did not differ from other participants; however, lower-income families, co-residence with grandparents, and families with children of 11-13 years of age and female children had greater odds of dealing with head lice. Other behaviors, such as bed-sharing, clothing sharing, and choice of health information source were not significantly associated with incidence of pediculosis.
Conclusions:
Socioeconomic context, household dynamics, and access to accurate information are relevant to managing head lice which underscores the need for targeted, community-sensitive public health continued education efforts.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Recommended Citation
Musa, Padde; Braswell, Sarah E.; and Eremeeva, Marina E.
(2026)
"Parental Knowledge, and Determinants of Head Lice Infestation in Rural Southeast Georgia,"
Journal of the Georgia Public Health Association: Vol. 12:
No.
1, Article 5.
Available at:
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/jgpha/vol12/iss1/5
Suppl-file-Questionnaire