Transmission of Body Lice

Lice on Body (Body Lice)

Can Body Lice Transmit Disease?

Unlike head lice, which do not transmit disease, body lice can, in some cases, spread diseases. Epidemics of typhus and louse-borne relapsing fever have been caused by body lice, for example.

Though typhus is no longer widespread, epidemics still occur under the following conditions:

During times of war
During civil unrest
During natural disasters
In refugee camps
In prisons where people live crowded together in unsanitary conditions.

Typhus still exists in places where climate, chronic poverty, and social customs prevent regular changes and laundering of clothing.

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