GB2343627A

GB2343627A - Pest control in hair, fur or wool

Info

Publication number: GB2343627A
Application number: GB9926542A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Paul Douglas Clarke
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1998-11-13
Filing date: 1999-11-09
Publication date: 2000-05-17
Also published as: GB9926542D0; GB9824991D0

Abstract

A method of controlling pests in animal hair, fur, wool or the like comprises maintaining the hair, fur, wool or the like in contact with an article coated or impregnated with an appropriate pesticide. The method includes a way of controlling head lice infestation in human hair. The invention includes an article coated or impregnated with a suitable pesticide for use in the method of the invention.

Description

PEST CONTROL This invention relates to pest control and particularly, but not exclusively, to a method and device for controlling lice and other pesticidal infestations of human hair, sheep wool and the like.

Head lice infestations of human hair are common, particularly among children. These infestations can be quite difficult to eradicate, especially in school populations for example. The main treatment is by way of specially formulated shampoos, but these are a nuisance to use and are relatively expensive.

One problem encountered with head lice infestations is that in any given population of lice, some lice will typically be resistant to one or more of the commonly used pesticides. It is, therefore, necessary to use more than one pesticide in order to completely eradicate the lice. Some of the most effective pesticides, however, present toxicity problems and so cannot be used directly against the skin, for example in shampoo formulations. Indeed, a disadvantage with some presently available pesticidal-shampoos is that they can cause skin-sensitisation reactions and other unwanted side-effects because the shampoo contains a pesticide having a degree of toxicity and which is free to be absorbed by the skin.

I have now devised a simpler, more effective and safer way of controlling head lice and the like that allows the use of the most effective pesticides but avoids or significantly reduces the toxicity problems commonly associated therewith.

According to the present invention, there is provided a method of controlling pests in animal hair, fur, wool or the like, which method comprises maintaining the hair, fur, wool, or the like in contact with an article coated or impregnated with an appropriate pesticide.

In a second aspect the invention provides a method of controlling head lice infestation in human hair, which method comprises maintaining in contact with the hair an article coated or impregnated with anti-head louse pesticide.

In another aspect, the invention provides an article for pest treatment of animal hair, fur, wool or the like, which article is adapted to be maintained in contact with the hair, fur wool or the like on the animal, which article includes at least a portion coated or impregnated with the pesticide, said portion being in contact with the hair, fur, wool or the like in normal use of the article.

In a still further aspect, the invention provides an article adapted to be maintainable in contact with head hair, which article includes at least a portion coated or impregnated with anti-hair louse pesticide, said portion being in contact with the hair in normal use of the article.

In use of the articles of the present invention, the pesticide is preferably not in direct contact with the skin of the animal. Thus, the article, and therefore the pesticide, are preferably only in contact with the outer surface of the hair, fur, wool or the like. There is, thus, little or no direct contact of the pesticide against the skin (such contact being inevitable with shampoos, for example, which are massaged into the hair, fur, wool or the like) so the potential for sensitisation reactions and the like is minimised or completely eliminated. The present method is capable of completely eradicating pests such as lice, since lice are mobile within the hair and thus eventually come into contact with the coated or impregnated article. It is, therefore, simply necessary to ensure that the article is maintained in contact with the hair for a sufficient period of time to effect the desired treatment.

In the treatment of human hair, the article can be anything which can be worn in contact with the hair over a prolonged period. Thus, for example, the article can be a hair net, a headband, a hat or cap or a scrunchie. In the case of a headband with a region worn partly over the forehead, this region can if desired by free of pesticide. In hats, caps or other headcovers, the portion containing the pesticide can be, for example, in the headband of the hat or cap so that it is in good contact with the hair.

Again, any portion of the headband normally contacting the forehead can, if desired, be free of pesticide. The above examples are only by way of illustration and are non-limiting.

Elasticated hair nets can be used to substantially the whole of the head hair and thus provide a most effective lice control. The nets can be worn for several hours at a time, e. g. overnight, or even for a day or more wheri circumstances allow.

One particularly preferred headcover for the present invention is a mob cap, of the type used in the catering industry. These caps are generally made from polyethylene synthetic fibre (although other suitable materials can be used) and typically consist of a single piece of material (which covers the hair) inserted into an elasticated headband. Figure 1 shows a schematic representation of a mob cap. The material is gathered together near the headband, the most"bunched"region of the cap corresponding to the area worn just behind the ears. When the material is uniformly coated or impregnated with pesticide (and such a coating has the virtue of simplifying processing), the mob cap arrangement thus results in the greatest amount of pesticide being made available to the hair region behind the ears. This is particularly desirable since this region typically contains the highest density of lice. Of course, if desired, the pesticide can be confined to a particular region of the hair-contacting material in the mob cap such as, for example, the region contacting the hair behind the ears.

The hair net or other article of the invention contains the antihair louse pesticide such that the pesticide contacts the hair in use of the article. Thus, the pesticide may for example be a coating on the article (or on that region where the pesticide is to be located) or it may be within the article, e. g. impregnated, but available at the hair-contacting regions.

A variety of anti-hair lice pesticides can be used with the articles of the present invention. We prefer to use permethrin, malathion and carbaryl. Permethrin is preferably used at a concentration of about 200 mg per square centimetre of hair-contacting material, although greater or lesser amounts can be used as will be readily determinable by the skilled man. One way of achieving a uniform distribution of permethrin on the material is to soak the hair-coating material in, for example, a 10% aqueous formulation of permethrin and then dry the material. Malathion and carbaryl are both typically used at a concentration of about 0.5% in hair lotions and equivalent amounts can be used on the present articles. These pesticides can for example, be applied to the article in the same way as permethrin using aqueous formulations of suitable concentration.

I prefer to use these pesticides in conjunction with a mob cap.

Preferably, two or more separate mob caps each coated with a different pesticide are used in rotation. It is particularly preferred to use three mob caps in this way, although more than three caps can be used if desired and, of course, the choice of article can be varied as necessary. Thus, for example, three mob caps (coated or impregnated with, for instance, permethrin, malathion and carbaryl respectively) can be worn in rotationfor example a different cap each night over three nights. The rotation can then be repeated as necessary. Obviously, the length of time for which each cap is worn and the period between each donning can be varied as desired.

The combined effect of multiple separate treatments in this way substantially overcomes the problem of pest resistance to any one pesticide and ensures complete (or virtually complete) eradication of the pest.

Whilst the invention is of particular utility in controlling human hair lice infestations, it can be used to treat other pests in human hair and, indeed, pests in sheep wool and in the fur or wool of other animals. The invention thus further includes a method of controlling pests in animal hair, fur, wool or the like, which comprises maintaining the hair, fur, wool or the like in contact with an article coated or impregnated with an appropriate pesticide.

The invention further includes an article for pest treatment of animal fur, hair, wool or the like, which article is adapted to be maintained in contact with the fur, hair, or the like on the animal, which article includes at least a portion coated or impregnated with a pesticide, said portion being in contact with the fur, hair, wool or the like in normal use of the article.

The nature of the article used for animal treatment will, of course, depend on the animal to be treated. In the case of sheep, I prefer to use netting impregnated or coated with the pesticide, but the precise nature of the article is not important provided prolonged contact between the pesticide and the fur, hair, wool etc. can be maintained.

The pest control which can be effected in accordance with the present invention can be by way of protection of uninfested hair etc. or by way of treatment of infested hair to reduce and eventually eradicate the pest.

It is important that the pesticide be maintained in contact with the hair etc. for a suitable period of, for example, a few hours or longer. The contact should not be simply transitory (as for example might be achieved by brushing or combing the hair) since this is unlikely to be of much effect on the pests.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A method of controlling pests in animal hair, fur, wool or the like, which method comprises maintaining the hair, fur, wool or the like in contact with an article coated or impregnated with an appropriate pesticide.
2. A method according to claim 1, wherein the animal is nonhuman and the article is in the form of a net impregnated or coated with pesticide.
3. A method according to claim 2, wherein the animal is a sheep.
4. A method of controlling head lice infestation in human hair which method comprises maintaining in contact with the hair an article coated or impregnated with anti-head louse pesticide.
5. A method according to of claim 4, which method further comprises the sequential use of two or more articles coated or impregnated with an appropriate pesticide, each article being coated or impregnated with a different pesticide. i
6. A method according to claim 4 or 5, wherein the or each article is a hair net, a mob cap, a head band or a scrunchie, or a hat, cap or other head cover.
7. A method according to any of claims 4 to 6, wherein the or each article is a mob cap, a head band, hat, cap or other head cover, only a portion of which contains the pesticide.
8. A method according to any of claims 4 to 7, wherein the or each article is a mob cap or a hair net arranged to cover substantially the whole of the head hair.
9. A method according to any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the or each pesticide is chosen from permethrin, malathion and carbaryl.
10. A method according to any of claims 5 to 8 wherein three articles are used, the articles being coated or impregnated with, respectively, permethrin, malathion and carbaryl.
11. An article for pest treatment of animal hair, fur, wool or the like, which article is adapted to be maintained in contact with the hair, fur, wool or the like on the animal, which article includes at least a portion coated or impregnated with the pesticide, said portion being in contact with the hair, fur, wool or the like in normal use of the article.
12. An article adapted to be maintainable in contact with head hair for a prolonged period, which article includes at least a portion coated or impregnated with anti-hair louse pesticide, said portion being in contact with ; the hair in normal use of the article.
13. An article according to claim 11 or 12, which is in the form of a net.
14. An article according to claim 12, which is a hair net or mob cap for human use.
15. An article according to claim 10, which is a head band or scrunchie, or a hat, cap or other head cover.
16. An article according to any one of claims 9 to 13, wherein the pesticide is permethrin, malathion or carbaryl.