THE AMERICAN ENTOMOLOGIST. 



117 



special study of cutaneous diseases, were more 

 familiar with the means of obtaining tlie para- 

 site, as we have above described, when search 

 for it always rcvaaled the true canse. 



This mite, in burrowing into the skin, pro- 

 duces intense itching, and sonie(imcs a vesicular 

 eruption on the surface; but this is all. The 

 intense itching, however, causes those infested 

 to scratch themselves incessantly, night and 

 day; and they consei|uentIy tear and lacerate 

 the siciu iu ^ivery direction. The mite, as we 

 said, needs a delicate part of the skiu to dig 

 into, — between the lingers, ior insrance, — and 

 licre the peculiar looking burrows are tirst 

 sought for. The portion of the skin of the 

 whole body particularly ravaged by this un- 

 pleasant parasite are so definite, that those 

 familiar witii cutaneous diseases can, at a 

 glance, say wliether the patient has the itch. 

 It must be remembered that several other dis- 

 eases of the skin cause as bad itching as the 

 Itch-mite; but the special portions of the gen- 

 eral integument are, however, so marked to the 

 practiced eye, that we no longer feel any need 

 of finding a mite in its burrow to establish our 

 diagnosis and treatment. In fact, we might 

 spend a long time iu fruitless hunt, when the 

 trouble has lasted sometime, or treatment has 

 been attempted. 



We seem, perhaps, very precise and prosy in 

 .all this ; but, during and since the war, so mu(;li 

 scabies h.as been diffused through our country, 

 that many family physicians are called upon to 

 treat what (hey have never before seen, and 

 their want of immediate success should not tell 

 against them. We only desire the community 

 and physicians to understand that the Jackson 

 Itch, the Seven-years' Itch, aud the Army Itch, 

 are all due to the presence iu tlic skiu of one 

 and the same animal, namely, tlie Acarus sca- 

 biei, or Sarroptes hominis, tho Itch-mite depicted 

 at the commencement of this article. 



How now, fin.ally, can wc get rid of our 

 minute, insinuating, and irritating friends ? 

 They lie stored away beneath the hard layer 

 of the scarf-skin ; this, therelbrc, must be re- 

 moved, in order to expose them; then some- 

 thing fatal to them, but not hurtful to the skin, 

 must be brought in contact with them, and 

 tinally the excoriations and eruptions caused 

 by the constant scratching must be properly 

 treated. The severity of these latter symptoms 

 depend, of course, on the length of time the 

 person had been afTected ; that is to say, upon 

 the number of Itch-mites which are committing 

 ravages upon liim, and partly on the degree of 

 the pcusibilitv of the skin. As long as the 



person lives, the mite will flourish upon him, till 

 it is destroyed by proper methods. In the illus- 

 trations (Figs. 78, 79, 80), the mite, as is seen, 

 is quite deep in the scarf-skin; our first efforts 

 towards treatment must therefore be to soften 

 and break down or rub ofV this epidermis. 

 Every one is familiar with the effect of the 

 long-continned application of warm water and 

 soap to the skiu, how it swells up the scarf- 

 skin, softens it, and renders it easily scraped or 

 rubbed otl'. Therefore a person with this highly 

 unpleasant trouble must first thoroughly soak 

 himself in hot water, and rub all parts of the 

 body which are the abodes of the mites witli 

 the strongest soft soap. This will be half an 

 hour's work. The more delicate the skin, the 

 shorter time required. Next, the common sul- 

 phur ointment must be rubbed thoroughly over 

 the body. This touches and Is fatal to the Itcli- 

 mite, already exposed in whole or part by the 

 burrows being broken down by the soft soap 

 aud hot water. If it does not produce too 

 much irritation, the ointment might be left on 

 over night, and removed by a hot bath in the 

 morning. With a delicate skiu, sulphur soap 

 can be used instead of sulphur ointment. If 

 one such application does not suffice, it must 

 be repeated. All the patent and popular medi- 

 cines .advertised lately, on account of the itcli 

 being so widely spread through the country, 

 are pretty sure to depend for their success on 

 the presence of sulphur, the smell of which is 

 hid, more or less, by other ingredients. There 

 arc many other substances used by physicians 

 to destroy this parasite. Tlie above described 

 method will be sure to succeed if thoroughly 

 carried out, as of course a few mites left will 

 soon multiply and again annoy the patient. 

 Those who are out of the reach of medicines 

 and hot baths, may often succeed in getting rid 

 of their minute friends, by bearing in mind the 

 general laws of treatment; namely, that (he 

 hard scarf-skin must be softened and broke 

 down, and afterwards whatever kills the acari, 

 and does not hurt the skin, be applied. Neces- 

 sity will be the mother of invention. 



Nothing is more difficult, or, in fact, dan- 

 gerous, than to give medical directions to be 

 followed by the community. Wo would most 

 strongly advise any one suffering from the rav- 

 ages of this little pest to apply to a physician, 

 and let him conduct the treatment. Those 

 who make a specialty of cutaneous medicine, 

 fortunately, nowadays, have a large choice of 

 substances and methods of applicatfon, which 

 can be adapted to the social condition, the 

 degree of cutaneous sensibility, and the age and 



