"Suddenly Itchy Body"... What Happened to the University Dormitory in an Uproar?

Two Students Living in Men's Dormitory Infected
Some Members Express Dissatisfaction Over Inadequate Notification

Exterior view of Samyook University located in Nowon-gu, Seoul. Photo by Asia Economy DB

A contagious skin disease called 'scabies' has occurred in a university dormitory located in Nowon-gu, Seoul.

According to Yonhap News and Samyook University on the 16th, two students living on the 5th floor of the men's dormitory Zion Hall were confirmed to have scabies on the 10th.

Scabies is caused by the scabies mite parasitizing the skin, creating burrows in the stratum corneum, which causes severe itching. It generally has an incubation period of about 4 to 6 weeks.

The school immediately sent the two students home and completed disinfection of the entire building the next day. They also notified dormitory residents of the scabies occurrence via text messages and other means.

On the 15th, a female student living in the women's dormitory complained of itching, but test results showed she was not infected with scabies. Considering students' concerns, the school also reported that Eden Hall is undergoing disinfection.

Additionally, students residing on the 5th floor of Zion Hall were asked to refrain from visiting lower floors, and dormitory residents were advised to study inside the dormitory instead of the library.

Meanwhile, the school announced through an SNS group chat that "disinfection is being conducted due to a scabies patient in the dormitory," but the notice was deleted shortly after, leading some members to express dissatisfaction.

On the school's bulletin board Everytime, critical posts such as "If it's an infectious disease, shouldn't the source of the outbreak be properly announced?" and "Is there favoritism because they are theology dorm students?" were posted one after another. The theology dorm is a space where theology students live together.

A Samyook University official explained, "The notice was issued and then removed because the scabies infection was not confirmed," adding, "The student in question was found not to have scabies."