Head lice pesky? Yes, but not an excuse to miss school, pediatric physician group says

Here's a look at some of the top health news being talked about around the U.S. and the world today:
• Head lice appear to be getting harder to get rid of than in years past as they build up resistance to the old methods of getting rid of them, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics and reported in the Wall Street Journal. The academy recently also said children shouldn't be kept home because of lice because, while it may be a nuisance, it is not a health threat.
• It's believed hoarding could be on the rise, with estimates that people who hold on to possessions to extreme levels make up 2 percent to 5 percent of the population, CNN reported.. The issue has been brought to attention more recently after Illinois firefighters had to cut a hole through the roof of a home to get to a deceased 82-year-old woman because the doors and windows were blocked from items she'd hoarded. University of Michigan co-director of the Trauma, Stress and Anxiety Research Group weighed in, saying hoarders could be motivated by utilitarianism.
• There's more support for focusing solely on chest compressions during cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, it's being reported by NPR. New studies published this week in the New England Journal of Medicine say teaching laypeople to keep pushing on the chest to keep the blood flowing works as well with traditional CPR, which has included mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Tina Reed covers health and the environment for AnnArbor.com. You can reach her at tinareed@annarbor.com, call her at 734-623-2535 or find her on Twitter @TreedinAA.
Comments
quitoslady
Fri, Jul 30, 2010 : 1:31 p.m.
When my daughter was going to school in Ypsilanti, there was a girl there who had lice all the time. The nurse refused to do anything about it. The girl finally moved on to another school. I used tea tree oil shampoo on my daughter and luckily she never got them. I agree they should stay home and not contaminate everyone. Head lice however do not discriminate rich people get them too.
cinnabar7071
Thu, Jul 29, 2010 : 1:10 p.m.
Anglea I didn't know that rich kids don't get lice. Thanks for sharing.
Angela
Thu, Jul 29, 2010 : 12:57 p.m.
I can't believe some ignorant doctor said that kids shouldn't be sent home because of head lice!!!! Are you kidding me?? Headlice is contagious!! I don't think my co workers would really appreciate it if i came to work sharing my wealth of lice. So what are we supposed to do just deal with these bugs??? So if they have scabies should they go to school too?? The line has to be drawn somewhere people. Headlice are not just a nuisance. They are disgusting!!!!! Please don't listen to this doctor, he/she probably don't have kids or they are so rich that headlice never hits their school. If your children have lice please keep them at home!!!