Symptoms of chicken pox in children

The most common childhood diseases include chicken pox, or, as people call it, chicken pox. It can be infected at any age, but to a greater extent it affects children under 10 years old. Varicella is an acute infectious disease that affects only humans. Many young and inexperienced parents are not able to recognize chickenpox, and that is why they are often lost and can not provide adequate care to a sick child. Therefore it is important to know how to identify chickenpox in a child.

The first symptoms of chickenpox in children

The causative agent of varicella is the herpes group virus, which affects skin cells and mucous membranes. The virus is transmitted by airborne droplets from a person. However, infection can occur not only through direct contact. "Catch" the infection can be, after visiting the rooms adjacent to the room where the patient is.

Children who are less than five years old are particularly susceptible to chicken pox. Breasts up to six months practically do not get sick, because through breast milk they are supplied with antibodies to the mother.

The latent period in the disease can last from 10 to 21 days, but usually lasts approximately 2 weeks. The disease manifests itself in an acute form: with chickenpox, children have a fever. Usually it rises to 38-39 ° C, less often - up to 39.5 ° C. Children feel unwell, chills, aching joints like flu, headache or abdominal pain. The child can refuse to eat, be capricious. Regarding chicken pox in infants, the symptoms are generally similar, only the sick kid usually refuses to breast.

But this is not the most symptomatic symptom. On the first or second day of the child sprinkles. "What does the rash with chickenpox look like?" This is what worries many parents. It is not difficult to distinguish it from manifestations of other diseases. On the skin appear mild eruptions in the form of flat spots of pink color the size of peas. They protrude on the face, limbs, scalp, trunk, in some cases on the mucous membrane of the mouth, genitals. A few hours later, the specks turn out to be convex. These tubercles become bubbles with liquid contents, surrounded by a reddening zone. After 1-2 days they are opened, and then dry up. At the place of the bubbles, light yellow crusts form, which after one or two weeks will disappear, leaving no scar. Characteristic for chickenpox is an undulating course. This means that in 3-4 days the patient will have rashes again. Thus, on the body of the baby at the same time there will be bumps and crusts, as well as bubbles.

Many parents are interested in the temperature at chickenpox. No, it is not necessary, this happens with mild disease in children under 10 years old. Even the rash is insignificant.

But is windmill without a rash? Such cases are rare, and the absence of rashes is explained by the strong immunity of the body. Only the pediatrician can diagnose the disease.

Complications of chicken pox

Among parents there is an opinion that chickenpox usually proceeds without a special danger to health. In general, the case is the same. But the course of the disease is complicated by severe itching. It should be prohibited to comb the baby's vesicles, as this can lead to infection and the formation of ugly scars for life. In particular, this applies to children of secondary and senior school age, in the body of which hormonal and physiological changes occur. Therefore, with chicken pox, the symptoms in adolescents have an intensified character. More common secondary skin infection, manifested in the appearance of shingles, abscesses, pyoderma, phlegmon. There is a high probability of infection spreading through the body and the development of pneumonia, myocardium, arthritis, sepsis, hepatitis. Characteristic is the brightness of the intoxication syndrome: severe head and muscle pains, high fever, photophobia and convulsions.

As you can see, the symptoms of the disease are so bright that the question "How to identify chickenpox?" Will not be difficult for you.