In the first part of '96 my dad was confined to a nursing home and
immediately on release started having horrid skin problems. His Dr.
after a few weeks sent him to a dermatologist who took two days to
diagnose him with scabies. He may have had scabies but he made some
comment about the great big bugs and I happened to see one in the house.
I found pictures of all kinds of mites and scabies on the internet but
no cooties.
As a history major I know about cooties association with WW I. I also
know they are commonly hosted by cows and have encountered a few little
ones (under 2 inches) from time to time. The dictionary says they are a
mite but the bugs I have seen have tiny bodies and very long legs, not
like any mite. The cootie also has a damned anomolous articulation that
makes it look more like a crawling swastica than a mite.
What is the life cycle of this bug? What is the treatment and
prognosis? My dad was treated with Elemite, which seems to be
pyretherides in a cream base. The scabies were knocked out immediately
and his symptoms reduced dramaticly but I saw a live cootie weeks after
the scabies were gone.
