Dr Phil Kieran: I'm worried my children will get scabies

Scabies is caused by the Sarcoptes mite.

I got scabies years ago as an adult and it took months to clear. I’m now a parent of two young children and worried about the reports of an outbreak in Ireland. What steps can I take to minimise the risk of picking up the skin condition?

Scabies is an intensely itchy skin condition caused by the Sarcoptes mite. These mites burrow under the skin and live, breed and die in their tiny burrows. The itch is caused by an immune reaction to their faeces and dead bodies as they don’t live very long. Because the itch is not directly due to their activity, the symptoms often take some time to present after infection. The itch tends not to subside until the layers of skin they have burrowed into are replaced. This usually happens about six weeks after treatment starts.