Is it possible that scabies can stay dormant for some time in hard and thick skin?

Question

Hello doctor,

I contracted scabies from a hotel I stayed at over two months ago. Two nights later, I stayed with my partner at his place. I learned that symptoms can show as quickly as 1 to 3 days in cases of reinfestation and I immediately recognized the small red itchy dots that I began developing along with a burrow line due to having contracted scabies years ago after a holiday.

I successfully treated myself and the symptoms eased. I visited my partner again only to have been reinfested by him. Although he showed no symptoms, he did the Permethrin treatment and I repeated the treatment. Symptoms eased. This was eight weeks ago. Since staying at his room two days ago, symptoms have appeared again. Itching along with new red rash is appearing due to scratching. I have done the ink test and am convinced that the little line shown on my forearm is a burrow forming.

What if I fail to understand that he has the disease and continues to experience no symptoms? It has been almost 11 weeks. How is this possible? Could scabies lay dormant for some time in darker, stronger skin? The anxiety this is giving me is crippling. Please advise.

Answer 1

Hello,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I understand your concern. But it can mean that you do not have scabies and it is something else like papular urticaria or like that. Please send pictures of the affected area to help you better. Take care.

Answer 2

Hello,

Welcome back to icliniq.com.

Thanks for sharing the pictures (attachment removed to protect patient identity). Yes, it looks to me like scabies only. Having symptoms like itching even after treatment is a common occurrence but after being treated if there is no itching then the person is unlikely to be suffering from it unless they are taking some antihistamines to suppress the itching.

I hope that you have repeated Permethrin after a week and applied all over your body below the neck. Repeating it after one week is a must.

Scabies mites also do not survive for more than three days in clothing so that is also not a possibility. Only another possibility is papular urticaria due to some bed bugs there, and that can also be very itchy. In that case, wash the bed sheets in warm water and change the bedding and see.