Jan 19, 2026 08:40 PM
(This post was last modified: Jan 19, 2026 11:36 PM by C C.)
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2026...of-scabies
EXCERPTS: “It was hell,” she says. “My mental health was in the pan, the scratching, the itching drives you insane, and the cleaning and laundry, and you feel you can’t talk to anybody …” She apologises, fearing she might sound crazed. “It affected our lives so horrendously, I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”
While extreme, their experience is becoming less of a rarity. If you don’t know someone with the condition, a glance at social media reveals many posts, dogged by the same desperation. They read like SOS calls.
[...] few people affected by scabies will initially know anything about the condition – that it is caused by the human mite sarcoptes scabiei var hominis, which is invisible to the eye and burrows into skin at a rate of 0.5 to 5mm a day. There, the females lay their eggs...
[...] Experts are grappling for reasons for scabies’ growing prevalence. One possible factor is that there were shortages of permethrin and malathion two years ago, due to supply chain issues. Dr Donald Grant, a GP who practises in a Welsh NHS surgery and privately as a senior clinician at The Independent Pharmacy, believes there could still be a knock-on effect. After the pandemic, people started mixing again, which, he says, “could have influenced a rise in scabies, made worse by the frequent stock issues surrounding important treatments, leading to a potential ‘ping-pong’ effect where individuals are continuously reinfested within households or close groups of friends”.
However, Michael Marks, Professor of Medicine at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the former chair of the International Alliance for the Control of Scabies, stresses that “the reasons for the ongoing rise … are unclear.” He says “similar trends” are being seen across Europe and that likely reasons include “outbreaks in crowded settings such as halls of residence and hostels”.
These are perhaps exacerbated by “delays in people being able to access care, and inadequate tracing and treatment of their contacts”. He says the strain on NHS GP waiting lists, leading to delayed treatment, lack of guidance and redirection to pharmacies, may also contribute to the problem. “Probably all of this plays a role,” he says. Some social media posts report frustration at initial misdiagnoses, often of dermatitis or eczema. One woman says her daughter “was tortured” with symptoms for a year before she received the correct treatment.
There has been talk of the mites becoming resistant to permethrin, although Marks says trials still find it to be highly effective if used properly. “There have been a small number of more plausible reports that there is some possible resistance,” he says. “But most treatment failure is likely to be due to ‘pseudo-resistance’: this means it fails not because of the product itself, but because it is so difficult to actually apply cream on your whole body and keep it on for 12 hours, and because, most of the time, we aren’t successful at finding and treating all (our) contacts.”
Young people, who are more likely to live in communal settings, appear to be affected the most. The UK Health Security Agency report found 41% of scabies diagnoses in sexual health services in 2024 were in people aged 20 to 24. John (not his real name), in London, is one of them. The 20-year-old, who works in hospitality, lives with his family, but it was after he began seeing a new partner in late October that he started showing symptoms. He later learned her house had recently suffered a scabies outbreak.
Dr Lea Solman, consultant paediatric dermatologist at Great Ormond Street hospital, flags embarrassment as one of the key hurdles she encounters. “The shame around scabies is one of the biggest obstacles we face in controlling outbreaks,” she says. “It stops people seeking help quickly, and it stops them having the difficult conversations needed to ensure everyone gets treated at the same time.” Solman sees the same stumbling block in parents of babies, who are particularly vulnerable. “Parents often feel deeply ashamed when their baby has scabies and that shame intensifies when they inevitably catch it themselves.” (MORE - missing details))
EXCERPTS: “It was hell,” she says. “My mental health was in the pan, the scratching, the itching drives you insane, and the cleaning and laundry, and you feel you can’t talk to anybody …” She apologises, fearing she might sound crazed. “It affected our lives so horrendously, I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.”
While extreme, their experience is becoming less of a rarity. If you don’t know someone with the condition, a glance at social media reveals many posts, dogged by the same desperation. They read like SOS calls.
[...] few people affected by scabies will initially know anything about the condition – that it is caused by the human mite sarcoptes scabiei var hominis, which is invisible to the eye and burrows into skin at a rate of 0.5 to 5mm a day. There, the females lay their eggs...
[...] Experts are grappling for reasons for scabies’ growing prevalence. One possible factor is that there were shortages of permethrin and malathion two years ago, due to supply chain issues. Dr Donald Grant, a GP who practises in a Welsh NHS surgery and privately as a senior clinician at The Independent Pharmacy, believes there could still be a knock-on effect. After the pandemic, people started mixing again, which, he says, “could have influenced a rise in scabies, made worse by the frequent stock issues surrounding important treatments, leading to a potential ‘ping-pong’ effect where individuals are continuously reinfested within households or close groups of friends”.
However, Michael Marks, Professor of Medicine at the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and the former chair of the International Alliance for the Control of Scabies, stresses that “the reasons for the ongoing rise … are unclear.” He says “similar trends” are being seen across Europe and that likely reasons include “outbreaks in crowded settings such as halls of residence and hostels”.
These are perhaps exacerbated by “delays in people being able to access care, and inadequate tracing and treatment of their contacts”. He says the strain on NHS GP waiting lists, leading to delayed treatment, lack of guidance and redirection to pharmacies, may also contribute to the problem. “Probably all of this plays a role,” he says. Some social media posts report frustration at initial misdiagnoses, often of dermatitis or eczema. One woman says her daughter “was tortured” with symptoms for a year before she received the correct treatment.
There has been talk of the mites becoming resistant to permethrin, although Marks says trials still find it to be highly effective if used properly. “There have been a small number of more plausible reports that there is some possible resistance,” he says. “But most treatment failure is likely to be due to ‘pseudo-resistance’: this means it fails not because of the product itself, but because it is so difficult to actually apply cream on your whole body and keep it on for 12 hours, and because, most of the time, we aren’t successful at finding and treating all (our) contacts.”
Young people, who are more likely to live in communal settings, appear to be affected the most. The UK Health Security Agency report found 41% of scabies diagnoses in sexual health services in 2024 were in people aged 20 to 24. John (not his real name), in London, is one of them. The 20-year-old, who works in hospitality, lives with his family, but it was after he began seeing a new partner in late October that he started showing symptoms. He later learned her house had recently suffered a scabies outbreak.
Dr Lea Solman, consultant paediatric dermatologist at Great Ormond Street hospital, flags embarrassment as one of the key hurdles she encounters. “The shame around scabies is one of the biggest obstacles we face in controlling outbreaks,” she says. “It stops people seeking help quickly, and it stops them having the difficult conversations needed to ensure everyone gets treated at the same time.” Solman sees the same stumbling block in parents of babies, who are particularly vulnerable. “Parents often feel deeply ashamed when their baby has scabies and that shame intensifies when they inevitably catch it themselves.” (MORE - missing details))
