Permethrin 5% Cream: Use and Precautions
Permethrin 5% cream guidance for scabies, including whole-body application and repeat treatment after 7 days.
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source date listed on the source page
Guide category
Drugs for external use and antiseptics
Safety boundary
Educational medicine information, not personal medical advice.
Kenza Health Hub presents this medicine page as structured health education. Check dose, route, interactions, pregnancy or breast-feeding considerations, and local protocol with a qualified clinician or pharmacist. Read our medical editorial policy.
Therapeutic action
Scabicide (pyrethroid insecticide).
Indications
Scabies.
Forms and strengths
5% cream.
Use
Child 2 months and over and adult: apply the cream to the whole body, including scalp, postauricular areas, palms of the hands and soles of the feet, paying particular attention to skin creases and interdigital web spaces. Leave on for at least 8 hours (e.g. overnight) then rinse thoroughly with water.
In child under 2 years: wrap hands to avoid accidental ingestion and contact with eyes.
Repeat the application after 7 days.
Contra-indications, adverse effects, precautions
- Do not use in children under 2 months.
- Do not apply to the face and mucous membranes, nor on broken skin.
- May cause paraesthesia, pruritus, redness, burning sensation, skin dryness, and rarely oedema or hypersensitivity reactions.
- Avoid contact with eyes. In case of accidental contact, flush immediately with plenty of water.
- Pregnancy: no contra-indication.
- Breast-feeding: no contra-indication. Do not apply to the breasts.
Source
MSF Essential drugs practical guidelines (January 2026)
This page combines source-derived medicine reference sections with Kenza editorial context, while leaving out the Storage and Remarks sections from the source batch.
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