chickenpox

Examples of chickenpox in the following topics:

• Shingles

  • Shingles, the common name for herpes zoster, is caused by latent varicella zoster virus, the same virus which causes chickenpox in children.
  • The initial infection with varicella zoster virus (VZV) causes the acute (short-lived) illness chickenpox which generally occurs in children and young people.
  • Years or decades after a chickenpox infection, the virus may break out of nerve cell bodies and travel down nerve axons to cause viral infection of the skin in the region of the nerve.
  • It has become common practice to vaccinate children against the virus that causes both chickenpox and shingles.
  • Vaccination after an individual has had chickenpox still reduces the risk of later developing shingles.

• Dermatomes

  • Viruses that remain dormant in nerve ganglia, such as the varicella zoster virus that causes both chickenpox and shingles, often cause either pain, rash, or both in a pattern defined by a dermatome.
  • Shingles typically appears years or decades after recovery from chickenpox.

• Blister

  • The most common are chickenpox, herpes, impetigo, and a form of eczema called dyshidrosis.

• Aspirin and Thrombolytic Agents

  • In children and adolescents, aspirin is no longer indicated to control flu-like symptoms, or the symptoms of chickenpox or other viral illnesses because of the risk of Reye's syndrome.