The Itchy-Nasty Chicken Pox

Recently, my daughter was hospitalized due to pulmonary infection. She was coughing for more than a month and has been taking antibiotics. Hubby and I were dismayed because she wasn’t getting well. Hubby got more concerned when her fever skyrocketed. The day after she was admitted, my hubby noticed some red rash on my daughter’s abdomen, back and chin. Her pediatrician said that she had chicken pox but the rash didn’t appear as blister because my

daughter received immunization. I was pleased to know about it because I haven’t had chicken pox since my existence. And I know that it is very contagious. Luckily, my daughter had one while I was away from home but she’s even luckier because daddy is also a nurse and took good care of her. J Thanks hubby!

As a parent, we need to educate ourselves about the common childhood diseases like chicken pox, so we can take care of our children very well. I have listed some information about chicken pox and my thoughts about it.

· Chickenpox is usually acquired through inhalation of airborne respiratory droplets. We have a perception that we can have the disease by rubbing our skin to the skin of the person suffering from chicken pox. Well, it is not true. We can have the disease if we are exposed to the host. And we cannot prevent it from happening but we can limit the amount of rash by having varicella vaccine. It is usually given at 12-15 months old with booster at 4-6 years old. For adults, vaccine is also available. Just consult your physician about it. I had one when I was in college J

· The disease is benign in the healthy child and increased morbidity occurs in adults and immunocompromised patients. The older we get, the greater the complications we can have. For adults, we can get more widespread rash, prolonged fever or even varicella pneumonia. But more interest should be given to pregnant women suffering from chicken pox because it can affect the fetus. Consult your OB doctor immediately so she give appropriate intervention.

· The common signs and symptoms of chicken pox are fever, pain on the abdomen, sore throat, head ache, a flu like symptom and rash that look like pimple or insect bite which usually appears on the abdomen. Aspirin is not recommended to treat fever because it can cause Reye’s Syndrome which can lead to liver failure or even death.

So when my daughter suffered from chicken pox, hubby provided her with oatmeal bath which can relieve itching. He trimmed her fingernails so she couldn’t scratch the blisters. I also recommended to put mittens at night. During day time, daddy distracted her attention by letting her sing, dance, draw and ride her bike. We didn’t let her go to school so she could have enough rest and not spread the virus to her classmates. My daughter looked pitiful when she had this disease but good thing she had it while she was young.

For more info, just visit: http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/skin/chicken_pox.html#