Chickenpox (Laghu Masurika) - Things You Should Know About It!

Chickenpox is an acute contagious disease, common to children, particularly between the ages of 1 - 10 years. Though it has a superficial resemblance to smallpox, it is entirely a different disease and less severe.

But the good news is that chickenpox is a common illness for kids and most people get better by just resting like you do with a cold or the flu. And the really good news is that, thanks to the chickenpox vaccine, lots of kids don't get chickenpox at all. Kids who do get it, if they got the shot, often get less severe cases, which means they get better.

Symptoms:

The disease starts with slight feverishness, and pain in the back and legs. There may be a feeling of chill, and with twenty-four hours of its onset, small red papules appear on the back and chest, and, sometimes, on the forehead too. 

• A rash that usually begins on the body and face and later often spreads to the scalp and limbs.

• It may also spread to the mucous membranes especially in the mouth and on the genitals.

• The rash is often itchy.

• It begins as small red spots which develop into blisters in a couple of hours.

• After one or two days, the blisters turn into scabs.

• New blisters may appear after three to six days.

• The number of blisters differs greatly from one person to another.

• The infected person may run a temperature.

• These symptoms are mild in young children.

• Chickenpox lasts 7 to 10 days in children and longer in adults.

• Adults can feel very ill and take longer to recover. They are also more likely than children to suffer complications.

Root Causes

Chickenpox is caused by a virus called varicella-zoster. It may start out seeming like a cold: You might have a runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, and a cough. But 1 to 2 days later, the rash begins, often in bunches of spots on the chest and face. From there it can spread out quickly over the entire body sometimes the rash is even in a person's ears and mouth. The number of pox is different for everyone. Some people get just a few bumps; others are covered from head to toe.