Scabies increasing

[Bettusboo]

Reports today of a massive increase in scabies, particularly including in care homes. Important to be aware that it may be more difficult to diagnose in people with dementia. We struggled for many months to have my father diagnosed and treated effectively. The care home he was in was in denial about the problem they had and we eventually had to move him to resolve the situation. A horrible and distressing problem and important to be aware that when a person in a care home develops persistent itching, scabies may well be the cause. https://www.theguardian.com/society/2024/jan/01/doctors-report-nightmare-surge-in-scabies-across-uk

 

[try again]

And yes I did itch as I read your post 🤭

 

[Bettusboo]

I can’t emphasise enough what a distressing condition this is for people with dementia. Our experience is that it was not well understood or recognised by medical professionals and the resulting delay in diagnosis made things far worse than they needed to be. The condition became so bad my Dads legs and groin swelled up so badly he couldn’t walk. This was put down to heart failure and he was prescribed water tablets. Since successful treatment the swelling has gone completely. The itching tormented him for several months after treatment due to post scabies syndrome. I just want as many people as possible to understand and recognise this problem to prevent needless suffering.

 

[Suzysheep01]

Thankyou Bettusboo. That sounds awful for your poor dad.