Open Access

Scabies

Scabies is a skin infestation caused by a mite known as the Sarcoptes scabiei. Untreated, these microscopic mites can live on your skin for months. They reproduce on the surface of your skin and then burrow into it and lay eggs. This causes an itchy, red rash to form on the skin.

There are approximately 130 millionTrusted Source cases of scabies in the world at any given time. While it’s a highly contagious condition that can easily be passed from one person to another through direct skin contact, scabies isn’t a sexually transmitted disease.