Chicken Pox

Chicken pox is one of the most common childhood illnesses. It is a viral infection and highly contagious. Infants below 1 yearmostly do not get this infection because mother’s milk provides the necessary antibodies, to protect the babies against the virus causing chicken pox. If at all they are infected, it will be a mild infection and will get cleared in 5 to 10 days. Once your child has had the infection, she will be immune to it for the rest of her life.

Symptoms

Itchy, blister like rash covering most of the body, mild fever and decreased appetite are the symptoms for this infection. Mild fever and a general feeling of unwellness precede the appearance of rashes. Rashes appear 10 to 20 days after the child is exposed to the virus. These blister like rashes first appear on the trunk and scalp, then spread to the face, arms and legs. The blisters will get healed after crusting over. The skin around the blisters may get slightly darkened, but will disappear little by little, after the rash is gone. The rash will disappear in 7 to 10 days.

Treatment

Discourage your child from scratching over the rashes. Trim the finger nails to protect from scratching. Give her a cool oatmeal bath and apply calamine lotion on the itchy spots. Make your child get good rest and plenty of fluids to drink. Keep your child’s skin, clothes, and bed covers clean. Your doctor may prescribe paracetamol in proper dose to reduce the fever. A prescribed medicine, acyclovir started within 24 hours of the attack of the disease, will help decrease the severity of the symptoms. Though this medication is not needed by everyone, it is more useful to children who suffer from other illnesses like asthma, eczema, and in adolescents.

If areas of the rash become too reddish, warm and tender, a bacterial infection is suspected and it will require antibiotics and an oral anti-itch medication, for which you should consult your paediatrician. And also if your child has fever for more than 4 days, or the temperature rises above 102 degrees Fahrenheit, you need to call your doctor. If the rash spreads to the eyes or if your child is overly sick, then too you need your paediatrician.
Complications that may arise from chicken pox are red eye syndrome and encephalitis. Signs that show these complications are vomiting, headache, convulsions, non- responsiveness, increased sleepiness or poor balance. These complications require you to immediately call your paediatrician.

Prevention

A vaccine is recommended for healthy children between 1 to 1-1/2 years of age, who have never had the disease before. Children under 13 years who have not had chicken pox before and who were not vaccinated, need a single dose of the vaccine, those above 13 years need two doses, with a gap of 1 to 2 months between the doses. The best, sure way to protect your infants until they are vaccinated at 1 year is to avoid exposure to the virus causing the infection. Keep your infant away from infected children or adults. If your child has chicken pox, isolate her until she recovers, to prevent the spread of the virus.