A homeless man living at a Carson City shelter who became infected with scabies skin mites had the infection before moving into the shelter, authorities say.
Paul Schultz moved into the Wylie men's shelter, 110 Jacobsen Way, on July 14.
He developed symptoms of scabies on about July 27, he said.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, scabies symptoms may take four to six weeks to appear for a person who has never been infected.
"I've never had scabies in the past," said Schultz, who is now under medication and living in a North Carson City hotel.
He came to the area about a month ago from outside of Santa Cruz, Calif., Schultz said.
Since the infection, the Wylie shelter has been properly treated under guidance from the Carson City Health Department.
"(The manager) did the proper thing of stripping the bedding, laundering the sheets and pillowcases, and putting the mattresses out in the sun," said Dustin Boothe, environmental health specialist with the department.
The building has also been fumigated.
"No one else has come forward (reporting symptoms)," Boothe said.
Scabies are skin mites about .4 millimeter wide - just visible to the human eye.
They are attracted to warmth and odor. The female mite burrows into the skin, lays eggs, and produces toxins that cause allergic reactions and intense itching.
Scabies mites can live in bedding for about 24 hours.
