Many years before chickenpox was considered to be a disease that affected everybody during childhood. After the vaccine against varicella was discovered, the number of chickenpox cases started to decrease. This vaccine is applicable to children aged more than12 months, to adults and to pregnant women too. Nowadays most of the babies get such a vaccine at the age of 12 or 15 months. Also, a person who has never had chickenpox and got in close contact to an infected person could ask for this vaccine because it can prevent the disease from occurring.



Chickenpox can cause serious complications to those who have problems with their immune system or to pregnant women and babies. Therefore, a shot of varicella zoster immune globulin is given to those people in order to prevent chickenpox. Also, people who never had chickenpox can ask for a vaccination.

An antiviral treatment can also be taken by adults to help reduce the symptoms of chickenpox. Acyclovir (Zovirax) is efficient only if taken within the first 24 hours after exposure. In children this treatment is not recommended because it does not help so much and is quite expensive.

Other treatment is available for relieving the symptoms of the disease. Oatmeal baths and calamine lotion are good for reducing the itching. Scratching is prohibited because it can produce skin infections and so, the nails should be cut?just in case you feel like scratching. Other drugs that keep under control the itching are antihistamines, and for reducing the fever non-aspirin medication is recommended.

Try not to scratch because there can appear marks on the skin after the infection has passed.

Chickenpox does not require hospitalization and is generally easy to diagnose. Also, call your doctor for advice if you have in your family a pregnant women or a member that takes steroids regularly or has cancer.

Also, call your doctor if your child has fever, intense itching that does not go away with medication, infected blisters, headaches, or vomiting and any sign of pneumonia.

An infected person should stay at home in order not to contaminate other healthy persons especially those who have problems with their immune system.

If you think you got into close contact with an infected person call your doctor and ask for a varicella vaccine. This will help you keep chickenpox away. Also, if you had chickenpox during childhood, you can relax because you are immune to another chickenpox infection.