All About Chickenpox

[leetj]

Chickenpox is a highly contagious disease caused by varicella-zoster virus. One can become infectd through contact with chickenpox patients - by droplets from the upper respiratory tract, discharge from the ruptured lesions on the skin or from the herpes zoster virus.

The incubation period (period between acquisition of the virus to manifestation of clinical symptoms) varies from 2 to 3 weeks. The virus can be easily transmitted from the person incubating even a few days before rashes appear. Infected persons continue to become conagious until all crops of vesicles have crusted over.

Human are the only known carrier of this virus.

Symptoms

In youngf children:
Fatique
Headache
Fever

In adults:
Irritability
Headache
Loss of appetite
Joint pain
Muscle Pain
Higher and prolonged fever

These symptoms usually occur 24 to 36 hours before the onset of rose-coloured skin rashes with either mild or intense pain and itching. They appear prominently on the scalp, face, chest, back and abdomen. Crusts from the lesions will fall off when dried up. This may happen 1 to 3 weeks later.

Complications

Skin bacterial infection and scarring
Pneumonia (lung infection)
Shingles
Abortion and stillbirth

When primary infection is delayed until adult life, the ilness can be severe resulting in pneumonia, haemorrhagic varicella, encephalitis or varicella dissemination. Pneumonia is the most common cause of death in adults

[herny]

Thanks for the info but why does shingles occur in people who have chickenpox before?