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ASHA is dedicated to helping people access information about sexual health. We have always been committed to offering accurate information based on science, not ideology.
Scabies:
Fast Facts
Sexual Transmission
Scabies are passed on through close physical contact. Transmission is more likely when partners spend the night together than during a brief sexual encounter.
Nonsexual Transmission
Sexual contact is not necessary to spread scabies. Prolonged contact between household members may allow transmission to occur. Transmission is also possible through prolonged contact with infested linens, furniture, or clothing. It is unlikely that scabies would be transmitted during casual contact (e.g. shaking hands or hugging) or contact with inanimate objects, such as a toilet seat.
The type of scabies that infest humans is specific to human beings and are different than the type that infest dogs and other animals (more commonly known as mange).
Common sites of infestation are: webs and sides of fingers and toes, pubic and groin area, armpits, bends of elbows and knees, wrists, navel, breasts, lower portion of buttocks, penis and scrotum, and waist and abdomen. Rarely, they are found on the palms of the hands, the soles of the feet and the neck upward.
If a person has never been infected with scabies before, symptoms appear approximately 4 to 6 weeks after infection. If a person has been infected with scabies before, they will begin to experience symptoms within 1 to 4 days after infection, because of previous exposure to scabies.
A person is considered infectious from the time they become infected until treatment is successfully completed. Linens and clothing are considered infectious until treatment or until 2 weeks after the last exposure. After treatment, a person may unknowingly become re-infested through exposure to the primary source of contact or contact with a different infested source.
Recommended Treatment
Alternative Treatments
Scabies doesn’t usually cause anything more than discomfort and inconvenience. Occasionally, secondary bacterial infections may occur due to aggressive scratching.
ASHA is dedicated to helping people access information about sexual health. We have always been committed to offering accurate information based on science, not ideology.
HIV stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus. Learn the basics about HIV prevention, testing, and treatment.
PrEP stands for pre-exposure prophylaxis. The word prophylaxis means to prevent or control the spread of an infection or disease. The goal of PrEP is to prevent HIV infection from taking hold if you are exposed to the virus.
Life continues after becoming HIV positive. Thanks to new treatments, many people with HIV are living long, healthy lives.
Molluscum contagiosum is a skin disease caused by the molluscum contagiosum virus (MCV)
Once a disease primarily of children, molluscum has evolved to become a sexually transmitted infection in adults.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver that can be caused by a group of viruses—hepatitis A, B, C, D and E. When hepatitis viruses damage liver cells, scar tissue is formed and those cells can no longer function.
In the U.S., HPV infections are estimated to cause about 37,300 cases of cancer. The HPV vaccine can prevent over 90% of these cancers from ever developing.
Mycoplasma genitalium, or Mgen, was first identified in 1981. It is a bacterium that can infect the reproductive tract and is passed on through sexual contact.
ASHA believes that all people have the right to the information and services that will help them to have optimum sexual health. We envision a time when stigma is no longer associated with sexual health and our nation is united in its belief that sexuality is a normal, healthy, and positive aspect of human life.
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