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Chickenpox, also known as chickenpox, is a viral disease. It has an acute course. The main manifestation of the disease is a small-bubble rash that covers the entire body of an infected person. The virus is transmitted by airborne droplets and is highly contagious.
After contact with an infected person, it may take from one to 3 weeks before the first symptoms appear. At this time, the person himself will infect other people, not suspecting that he is already sick.
In children, chickenpox is easy. Adults suffer the disease more severely. The same applies to infants and people with weak immune systems.
chickenpox symptoms
The disease is manifested by fever and skin rash.
Signs that will indicate developing chickenpox:
Hyperthermic reaction of the body. Body temperature rises to 38 ° C, general weakness and fatigue increase.
A pink or red rash appears on the skin.
The rash looks like blisters.
When the bubbles open, they are covered with yellowish crusts.
The man complains of headaches.
An infected person may experience abdominal pain.
First signs
The disease develops acutely, a person experiences weakness in the body, his temperature rises. A rash begins to appear all over the skin, on the face, on the eyelids, in the hair.
At first, the rashes are red and round, and then they begin to rise above the level of the skin. After a few hours, the rash transforms into blisters. They have different sizes (1-5 mm in diameter). In appearance, these bubbles resemble drops of water on the skin.
After another 2 days, the bubbles dry up and become covered with crusts. They fall off after a week. As a rule, there are no scars at the site of the lesion.
The windmill has an undulating course. This is characterized by the fact that the old crusts dry out and fall off, and new bubbles form again. The number of rashes is increasing all the time. Therefore, 3 types of rash are immediately found on the dermis: crusts, spots and vesicles. This continues for 5-14 days. At the same time, a person may have a high body temperature. After the crusts fall off, the wounds should shrink. This takes a few more days.
Causes of chickenpox
The disease is caused by the herpes virus, namely varicella-zoster. In addition to chickenpox, this virus can cause herpes.
Under environmental conditions, the virus quickly dies if it is exposed to sunlight. At a temperature of +52 degrees, it retains its activity for half an hour. The virus is afraid of ultraviolet radiation, but is very resistant to low temperatures. It can survive freezing and thawing.
Once outside the human body, the virus will not live longer than 10 minutes. Therefore, infection when using common household items is extremely rare.
The source of the spread of chickenpox is a sick person. He begins to release the virus into the external environment 2 days before he has the first elements of the rash. A person remains contagious until all the elements of the rash dry out and new ones stop appearing.
The virus is transmitted by airborne droplets. Susceptibility to it is equal to 100%. After an infection, a person has strong immunity. It is possible to get chickenpox again, but this happens very rarely.
Types of chickenpox
Chickenpox can be mild, moderate or severe. All of these forms are typical of chickenpox. If a person has a mild form of infection, then his body temperature does not rise more than 38 ° C, there are few rashes on the skin. The rash is represented by single elements. It does not last longer than 4 days.
If the patient has a moderate form of the disease, then the symptoms of intoxication increase, the body temperature rises to 38,5 ° C, there are many elements of the rash, they all itch badly. The acute period persists for 4-5 days. After the rash stops appearing, body temperature returns to normal.
If the patient has a severe form of chicken pox, then the rash is abundant, they appear not only on the skin, but also on the mucous membranes. The body temperature reaches feverish values, the patient feels sick and vomits, he refuses to eat, sleeps poorly. The rash is very itchy. The acute stage of the disease lasts about 7-9 days.
Sometimes chickenpox can have an atypical course. Such an infection is rare, most often it is diagnosed in children with a weakened immune system, for example, after suffering leukemia, against the background of treatment with steroids and cytostatics.
Chickenpox with aggravated symptoms can be of the following types:
Generalized form (visceral or disseminated). A person’s body temperature rises. She reaches feverish levels. Intoxication of the body is strongly pronounced, there are many bubbles on the body. They appear even on the mucous membranes and on the genitals.
Hemorrhagic form of the disease. Rashes are accompanied by subcutaneous hemorrhages, they are noticeable in the area of the mucous membranes. The patient complains of frequent nosebleeds, he develops vomiting with blood. There may be hemorrhages in the internal organs.
Gangrenous form of the disease. In addition to the rash, areas of necrosis or gangrene appear on the human skin. They are covered with a hard scab, when the crust falls off, ulcerative defects will be visible inside.
Chickenpox in different age groups
Chickenpox is most severe in adults. The disease is complicated by pneumonia and encephalitis.
If the disease develops in a pregnant woman, especially in the first trimester, then this can cause intrauterine fetal death. When chickenpox develops in a pregnant woman in the later stages, it threatens with an early onset of labor, or the birth of a child with congenital chickenpox. Such children die, as the herpes virus spreads throughout the body and poisons it.
Children under 2 months of age rarely get chickenpox. If the infection happened before the child was one year old, then this threatens with serious consequences, including: ear inflammation, pneumonia, pyoderma, etc.
Complications of chickenpox
Most people get chickenpox during childhood, after which they don’t get the infection again. However, the herpes virus that caused chickenpox remains in the body for life. Sometimes it reactivates in adults, which leads to the appearance of rashes. In this case, they say that a person develops shingles or herpes.
After suffering chickenpox, scars can remain on a person’s skin. They are called ospin. Most often, such traces remain in adolescents. If pockmarks were large, then they persist for life. When pockmarks are temporary, they go away in 6-12 months.
Sometimes it happens that a pregnant woman gets sick with chickenpox, who must give birth to a child from day to day. In this case, the baby is born with a severe form of infection.
Another danger of chickenpox is the development of complications that are associated with the addition of bacterial flora. A person can develop encephalitis, pneumonia, inflammation of the brain, etc.
Diagnosis of chickenpox
Diagnosing the disease is not difficult, as it has a set of typical symptoms. The methods of laboratory research are rarely used. Most often this is necessary when the infection has an atypical course. In this case, bacteriological and biochemical blood tests can be carried out. If complications of the disease develop, then patients may be prescribed ultrasound, x-rays and other instrumental techniques. Their specific set depends on the characteristics of the course of the disease.
Treatment of varicella
Hospitalization of a patient with an uncomplicated course of infection is not required. It is important to direct efforts to prevent the development of severe consequences of the disease. It is necessary to follow the rules for the care of skin rashes, which are aimed at preventing bacterial flora from entering open defects.
If the disease is accompanied by a high body temperature, a person suffers from severe headaches, he has breathing problems, then you need to call an ambulance and go to the hospital for treatment.
Treatment of chickenpox is reduced to the implementation of the following activities:
Compliance with bed rest for a week.
Dieting. Emphasis should be placed on dairy products, plant foods, fortified meals. It is necessary to remove spicy, salty, and pickled foods from the menu, it is recommended to abandon citrus fruits. The fact is that rashes can appear not only on the skin, but also in the oral cavity, and the use of products containing acids can provoke irritation of the mucous membranes.
You need to drink enough water.
Bed linen needs to be changed more often than usual. The same goes for underwear. After washing, it is recommended to iron the linen.
After eating, you need to rinse your mouth.
Chickenpox is not a reason to chain a child to bed. However, you need to ensure that he does not engage in active and outdoor games. When the body temperature stabilizes, and all the elements of the rash are covered with crusts, it will be possible to go outside. The decision on the possibility of visiting educational institutions is made by the doctor.