Chickenpox

Chickenpox was very common among children before the vaccine. Most of the children will have it in case they didn’t get vaccinated, in addition to the adults.

Chickenpox

Chickenpox is a viral disease that causes a skin rash all over the body in addition to other symptoms. Chickenpox is extremely contagious, and about 90% of people who aren’t vaccinated will have it.

Causes of chickenpox

• Chickenpox occurs due to getting infected with the varicella-zoster virus.
• Chickenpox is very contagious, and it transmits from one to another through direct contact and touching the rash, breathing the air from the patient when sneezing or coughing, and touching the bodily fluids from the mouth, nose, or eyes.

Symptoms of chickenpox

Usually, chickenpox causes other symptoms in the early stages, and then the rash appears after 10-21 days. The symptoms include the following:

• Mild fever.
• Headache.
• Loss of appetite.
• Tiredness and weakness.
• Itchy skin rash.

The rash usually appears in three stages:

• The bumps start as red papules for a few days.
• The bumps become fluid-filled vesicles that open up within a day or two.
• The bumps start breaking and crusting over the skin, and this stage also continues for a few days.

Complications of chickenpox

In a few cases, chickenpox might cause the following complications:

• Bacterial infections in the skin, blood, joints, bones, and soft tissue.
• Pneumonia.
• Encephalitis.
• Liver problems.
• Dehydration.
• Problems in the blood clotting.
• Toxic shock syndrome.
• If a pregnant woman gets infected with chickenpox, that could cause problems in the fetus, such as low weight birth and limb problems.
• Chickenpox might cause shingles.
• In very rare cases, death.

Diagnosis of chickenpox

• Usually, diagnosis is done by a physical examination.
• Some cases might require other tests.

Treatment of chickenpox

• Chickenpox is usually left to heal on its own, and the rash is managed by applying cold compresses and some skin creams.
• Adults might need to take antivirals.
• There’s a chickenpox vaccine that can be taken from one year old.