A clinical trial evaluating Fennel essential oil shampoo on head lice

Background: Pediculus humanus capitis is a tiny, wingless and an obligate ectoparasite of humans that most often affects children in a range of 3 to 12 years old, but it can spread to the rest of the family.Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of Fennel essential oil shampoo on different life stages of lice-head in girls’ primary school students.Materials and Methods: Double blinded, randomized clinical trial was conducted at Karoon County in Khuzestan Province to compare the Fennel essential oil and permethrin1% shampoos against head lice.Around 145 elementary school girls (7-11 years old) were randomly divided into three groups, Fennel essential oil, Permethrin1% and normal baby shampoo, with receiving consumption instruction like permethrin1% by all participants. All 145 students were examined in determining the presence of nit, nymph and adults of lice on days 1, 7 and 14 after treatment.Results: There was no significant difference between the percentage of improvement in the three groups of participants in the first, seventh and fourth days after treatment. On the first day after treatment, the amount of reduced infestation of normal baby shampoo, fennel and permethrin 1% shampoos were 63.4%, 64.5% and 69.8%, respectively, which showed no significant difference between the three groups. On the 7th day after application of fennel essential oil shampoo head lice decreased to 72.7%. Also P. humanus capitis infestation decreased to 50%, 50% and 84% for normal baby shampoo, permethrin 1% and fennel essential oil shampoo in day 14, respectively.Conclusion: According to the results of this study, fennel essential oil has been effective in reducing the rate of head lice infestation and, given the insecticide s disadvantages, has the ability to be replaced with the chemical insecticides for the controlling head lice.

Keywords:

head lice , clinical trial , Fennel essential oil