New clinical trial data for non-pesticide based lice treatment

New data has been released this month which claims in vivo effectiveness for a non-pesticide based head-lice treatment.

The trial results have been published by Greive et al. in the July 2012 edition of the Australian Journal of Dermatology. The trial paper appears to be the copyright of Ego Pharmaceuticals, makers of the Moov series of anti-lice products, which include eucalyptus oil as one of their constituent ingredients.

The trial comprised 216 children. They were treated with either the pesticide-free product or a malathion-based foam. Product efficacy was judged via the presence or absence of live lice 21 days after the initial treatment.

The proportion of lice-free subjects was 62% for the non-pesticide- based product, versus 40% for the malathion foam (statistically signficant at the P = 0.003 level). Adverse reactions comprised only itching or stinging. In vitro tests on body lice confirmed both ovicidal and pediculicidal activity.