Acticin
Generic Acticin is a 30g tube of permethrin cream for scabies, sold in packs of one to six tubes for treating the skin infestation at home.
- Category
- Antiparasitics · Skin Care
- Active ingredient
- Permethrin
- Route
- Topical
- Form
- Cream
- Strengths
- 30g
You will receive a quality generic equivalent, depending on stock.
Shipped in a discreet, unmarked envelope.
Details
- Conditions
- Scabies
- Brands with the same ingredient
- Permethrin Topical Cream
- Therapeutic Class
- Scabicidal agents
- Pharmacological Class
- Pyrethroids
- Minor Side Effects
- Mild burning sensation, Itching
- Moderate Side Effects
- Irritation at application site
- Dosage Forms
- Cream
- Administration Route
- Topical
- Originator
- Perrigo
- Onset Time
- Immediate
- Duration
- Residual effects last for several days
- Storage Instructions
- Keep at room temperature.
- Age Restrictions
- Consult a professional for use in children.
What you will receive
Acticin is the originator brand name, made by Perrigo. We use it to identify the medicine; the pack you receive is a generic equivalent, not the original Acticin.
- The same active ingredient (Permethrin) at the same strength.
- The exact brand supplied depends on what is in stock when your order ships.
FAQ
Which generic Acticin pack sizes can I order?
Generic Acticin comes as a 30g cream in packs of 1 to 6 tubes. It is generic permethrin, not the original Acticin. Larger packs cost less per tube.
What arrives when I order generic Acticin to Hong Kong?
Generic Acticin cream tubes arrive in plain, unbranded packaging with nothing outside about the contents. Tracked courier takes 5 to 9 business days with online tracking, while standard airmail takes 14 to 21 business days, up to 30, and is untracked.
What is another name for permethrin?
Acticin, Nix and Elimite are brand names of permethrin, which is also sold as Lyclear and Permite. Here, permethrin can be bought online as generic Acticin, and also as generic Elimite and permethrin tubes. These are generics, not the original brand.
Do people I live with need treatment too?
Yes. Scabies passes from skin to skin, so everyone in the household and any sexual partners usually treat themselves at the same time, even if they have no itch yet. The first time someone catches scabies, symptoms can take several weeks to show.
Should I wash bedding and clothes after using Acticin?
Wash the bedding, towels and clothing you have used recently in hot water and dry them on a hot cycle. Anything that cannot be washed can go into a sealed plastic bag for a few days; the mites do not survive long once they are off the skin.
Can I put Acticin on my face?
In adults the cream is meant for the body below the chin, so the face is left out. It should also stay away from the mouth, nose, genitals and any other moist lining, and it is not rubbed into broken or inflamed skin.
How much cream do I need for one treatment?
One 30g tube is enough for a full-body application on most adults. The cream goes on thinly over the whole area rather than thickly on the itchy patches, since mites can be present on skin that does not itch at all.
About Acticin
Scabies treatment in a 30g tube
Acticin is a permethrin cream for scabies, the skin infestation in which tiny mites burrow under the surface and set off an itch that is often worst at night. What you order is a 30g tube of permethrin cream. Permethrin belongs to the pyrethroid family: it disrupts the nerve cells of the mites, stopping them moving and killing them, and it works only where you have rubbed it in.
How to apply Acticin
Skin should be clean, dry and cool before you start, so straight after a hot bath is not the moment. Smooth the cream over everything from the neck down: between the fingers and toes, around the wrists, under the nails and over the soles of the feet. It is a vanishing cream, which means it sinks in as you rub and there is no need to keep adding more until you can see it. Leave it for 8 to 12 hours, then wash it off thoroughly. If you wash your hands while the cream is on, put more on them afterwards. Keep it off broken skin and away from the eyes.
Still itching afterwards
Most people are still scratching a week after treatment, and that is normal. The mites are dead within hours, yet the skin goes on reacting to them for two to four weeks, a little less each week. The sign to watch for is something new: fresh burrows or a rash that was not there before mean some mites survived the first application.
Acticin, Elimite and plain permethrin cream
All three permethrin listings come as 30g tubes for scabies. Acticin is the name this one is sold under, and it is the generic cream rather than the original branded product. Elimite and Permethrin are the same medicine under different names, so the choice comes down to which name you are used to. The permethrin ingredient page brings them together.
Side effects and what to avoid
Most people notice only mild stinging, burning, redness or a little extra itch where the cream has been. A spreading rash, or swelling of the face and throat with trouble breathing, is rare and needs urgent treatment. Do not use the cream if you have reacted badly to permethrin before. Keep the tube capped in a cupboard, away from radiators and direct sun.
Sources
- Permethrin Topical: MedlinePlus Drug Information — MedlinePlus
- Permethrin 5% w/w Cream - Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC) - (emc) | 6540 — electronic medicines compendium (emc)