Human scabies from contact with water buffaloes infested with Sarcoptes scabiei var. bubalis

Abstract

Fifty-two human contacts with water buffaloes infested with Sarcoptes scabiei var. bubalis were investigated; 35 (67·3%) of the contacts showed symptoms of scabies and S. scabiei mites were recovered from 22 (62·8%) specimens. There was intense itching within a few hours of initial contact with the infested animals but no parasitic mite burrows developed. The people most commonly infected were aged 26–35 years. Hands and legs were the usual site of lesions (31·4%). The contacts had all been involved in handling and milking the buffaloes.