The LouseBuster eradicates Head Lice without chemicals

07:00 October 7, 2006 PDT

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University of Utah biologist Dale Clayton demonstrates the the latest prototype of the LouseBuster on his daughter, Miriam. The new, chemical-free treatment kills almost all louse eggs and enough hatched lice to prevent them from reproducing, effectively

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Results: The Utah LouseBuster Massacre

No household cleaning measures were taken because they are not considered essential; head lice cannot survive more than 24 hours off a host's head.

Each of the six treatment methods took 30 to 35 minutes and used air at about 140 degrees Fahrenheit. Here are the treatments, from least to most effective:

* Air hoses from two bonnet-style hair dryers fed air into one bonnet. This method killed only 10 percent of hatched lice but 89 percent of eggs.

* A handheld blow dryer was used to apply diffuse heating. Each child’s hair was divided into ten sections using hair clips, and the base of each section was heated three minutes while the dryer was moved to ensure even heating. This method killed only 21 percent of lice but 97 percent of eggs.

* A handheld blow dryer was used to apply directed heating. Hair clips were used to divide each child’s hair into 20 sections. The dryer was held still for 30 seconds to heat one side of each section, then held still another 30 seconds to heat the other side. This method killed 55 percent of lice and 98 percent of eggs. * A hose was attached to a wall-mounted blow dryer like those in public restrooms. The dryer was put on a table, and the hose used to treat hair divided into 20 sections. The method’s larger air volume killed 62 percent of lice and 97 percent of eggs.

* With the hair divided into 14 to 20 sections, a LouseBuster without a hand piece was used to treat each section with diffuse heat for 60 seconds. Air speed was similar to the wall dryer. This technique killed 76 percent of lice and 94 percent of eggs.

* A plastic hand piece with 10 coarse teeth (not like fine-toothed nit combs) was attached to the end of the LouseBuster hose and raked through hair while hot air blew the opposite direction. All areas of the scalp were raked and exposed to hot air for at least 30 seconds. The LouseBuster with the handpiece killed 80 percent of hatched lice – a larger proportion than any of the other five methods – and 98 percent of louse eggs.

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