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Chickenpox, also known as chickenpox, is a highly contagious disease caused by the chickenpox and shingles virus. The virus usually has a higher incidence in the late winter and early spring and mainly affects children, although it can also infect adolescents and adults.
The main feature of the disease are red spots and blisters on the skin, which eventually cause itching and discomfort. Transmission, incidentally, can be done precisely by contact with the liquid of the bubble, but also by coughing, sneezing and saliva, or by objects contaminated by the virus.
Between 2012 and 2017, 602,136 cases of chickenpox were reported in Brazil. The southern region reported 199,057 (33%) of the cases, followed by the Southeast Region with 189,249 (31.4%), while the North reported only 40,325 (6%). 6%). The age group with the highest frequency of reported cases was 1 to 4 years with 227,660 (37.8%), followed by 5 to 9 years with 179,592 (29%).
Although uncomfortable, the disease usually does not cause complications in most cases. "It is very difficult to prevent small ones from scratching the blisters and lesions. The itching can cause injury and trigger a bacterial infection. Other complications that can lead to hospitalization are pneumonia and the system. nervous compromise, "warns Dr. Bárbara Furtado, pediatrician and head of medical vaccines at GSK.
In children, these complications are rare. In adolescents and adults, the clinical picture is generally more difficult.
The disease, however, can be prevented by vaccination. The Brazilian Society of Pediatrics (SBP) and the Brazilian Society of Immunization (SBIM) recommend two doses of varicella vaccine: the first at 12 months and the next at 15 months, with a 3-month interval between first and last month. Infection, caused by the varicella-zoster virus, is very contagious and easy to diagnose because of the characteristic rashes.
They appear as red spots all over the body, including the mucous membranes (mouth and bad area). They itch and turn into blisters, but not at the same time. This causes eruptions in several phases: blemishes, blisters and crusts. In addition, when the person is infected, this virus becomes "dormant" in the body. In the future, especially from the age of 50, can cause shingles, also known as shingles.
What are the most common symptoms?
Symptoms of chickenpox usually appear between 10 and 21 days after the spread of the disease. In addition to red spots and blisters on the body, the disease also causes discomfort, fatigue, headaches, loss of appetite and low fever. The blisters initially appear on the face, trunk or scalp and spread through the body to become small vesicles filled with fluid. In a few days, the liquid darkens and the blisters begin to dry and heal. This process causes a lot of itching, and skin lesions can be infected with nail bacteria or objects used to scrape. The main complication of chickenpox is skin infection, but the disease can also cause ear infections, pneumonia and encephalitis.
After contact with the virus, when do symptoms appear? [19659005] The period between contact with the virus and the onset of symptoms is 4 to 16 days and transmission occurs between 1 and 2 days before onset of skin lesions and up to 6 days later when all the lesions are in the crust phase. It should be kept away from the daycare or school for about 7 days from the appearance of red spots on the body
How is the chickenpox virus treated?
In general, medications are used to relieve itching, headache and reduce fever. Hygiene care is very important and should only be done with soap and water. To reduce the itching, the ideal is to compress the cold water.
How can we prevent it?
Chicken pox is easily transmitted to other people and a way to avoid diseases is vaccination. The Brazilian Society of Pediatrics and the Brazilian Society of Vaccination recommend two doses of varicella vaccine: the first at 12 months and the next at 15 months, with an interval of 3 months at the first dose.
Is it possible to contract chickenpox more than once?
Usually, people with this disease are immune for the rest of their lives. However, a second occurrence may occur, especially in people with weakened immune systems
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