Taro Pharmaceutical Industries announced that it had received a patent for its Ovide lice treatment product from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Ovide is based on pharmaceutical grade malathion. The patent covers the company’s highly pure form of malathion, a method of making the chemical, its formulation, and a method for treating head lice.

Over 250,000 prescriptions for Ovide (malathion) lotion were filled last year in the U.S., making Ovide the country’s number one prescription treatment for head lice. The American Academy of Pediatrics estimates that between 6 to 12 million Americans are infested with head lice each year.