Conference moira::parenting

    	I can't help you with siblings, but Shayne was in a home daycare
    situation where EVERY ONE of the kids there came down with chicken pox. 
    I decided I wanted to go ahead and get them (chickenpox) over with and 
    continued to take him to the daycare and exposed him.  We also had him 
    at therapy where he was exposed and to this day he still hasn't gotten 
    them.  
    	I know he is just waiting until I finally win an all expenses paid 
    vacation to Hawaii that can only be taken on a specific date ;)!!
    

    My sons were both exposed every spring when the kids within their
    social realm had them - this was at least 3 springs seasons in a row
    and finally on the fourth - they got them.
    
    My oldest got them real bad - spots everywhere - and they were painful
    and he was miserable.  Now my second son got them within 3 days and
    only had 12 spots - but those spots were big fluid filled tight spots. 
    They were both completely recovered within 10 days (the younger cleared
    up within 7).
    
    Unfortunately, you can't predict this.  Keep a close eye on your second
    and watch especially the abdomen area.  Look daily for little spots -
    that seems to be the only sure sign.
    
    As far as going on vacation (bummer) - you'll have to decide if you
    can handle having the pox on vacation and just hope you don't.  I would
    not have been able to take it on our vacation because we were on the
    run all day!
    
    Good luck and I sure hope it all works out for your family!
    
    -sandy
    

    My 7 year old son had them when he was about 1 1/2 years old.  My
    5 year old daughter on the other hand has been exposed a couple times
    and hasn't had them yet.
    
    Within the last week, she has been exposed at daycare.  We have NO
    CHOICE but to continue with our plans if she gets them.  We have a
    very large (expensive) wedding planned for May 23rd and can't possibly
    back out of it, unless my fiance changes his mind.. :-)
    
    The other thing that has me worried is that my fiance hasn't had them
    yet either!!!  What do we do if HE gets them?  I think he's worried
    that it will make him sterile.  I keep telling him that it won't, it
    will just make him really sick.
    
    I would say go ahead and make your plans and stick with them unless
    you absolutely HAVE to cancel.
    
    I'm not cancelling my wedding!!

    
    If Iremember right, once the spots show up, it is not catchy anymore. 
    It's during the incubation period, which is (I think) 7 days that it's
    catchy.  So, if you other child does not get it within 7 days after the
    spots appeared on the first child, then he should be o.k.  For much
    better and more accurate information, check out the MEDICAL notesfile.
    
    Chris D. 

    Its important to keep in mind that while we obviously cant live in 
    glass bubbles, its not fair or safe to knowingly expose this potential 
    risk on unsuspecting others.  There is a large majority of adults who have 
    never had the pox and a pregnant woman (and in the first trimester you
    cant see she's pregnant) could be at risk being exposed to them if she
    hasnt had them. (and ALOT of us havent had them and I for one am
    pregnant)
    
    Since you said your driving, the outside world wont be at risk if
    he/she is incubating them but please think twice before boarding planes
    and entering restaurants, grocery stores, etc.  While it is common for
    kids to be exposed to them these days, not all parents want their
    babies and toddlers getting them at a very early age if preventable and 
    its a guaranteed, miserable time if an adult gets them.
    
    Its a drag to have to reschedule a much needed vacation especially if
    you have prepaid reservations and might loose money.  On the other hand
    it is a highly contagious illness and should be handled like any other.

    re: .4
    
    Chicken pox are still contagious after the spots appear and remain
    contagious until all spots have scabbed over.
    
    Lori B.

We had a bout with the chicken pox a the summer before last.  First
the youngest child (5), then the older child (7) about 3 weeks after
the younger first had the spots, and then my husband lagging just a
few days behind the older child.  Erin, youngest, didn't have them
too bad, just cranky and fevery and itchy a couple of days.  Joshua
was just a little more of everything for a little longer.  My husband
was absolutely miserable and nearly drove me crazy.

You have to weigh what it would mean if your son came down with them
on vacation versus how easily you can change vacation plans.

Leslie

    RE: .5
    
    I would not knowingly expose the chicken pox to others (my daughter has
    not left our house this week).  But, I was under the impression that
    they were only contagious if physical contact was made.  Are you 
    saying that being in a restaurant or grocery store where someone in
    the same place has chicken pox (or is about to get them), that you
    could get them?
    
    Jill
    

    re: .8
    
    Being exposed does not mean having contact with someone who is
    contagious but rather just being in the same environment.
    
    Lori B.

    I'm not a doctor, and I've never played one on TV, but isn't it the
    mumps that cause sterility, and not the chicken pox?
    
    I'll bet one of you who is into medical stuff knows for sure.
    
    judy

    
    Actually it is not the primary disease that can cause sterility but
    rather the prolonged fever that can sometimes accompany these diseases.
    As modern medical miracles (read asprin and tylenol) work very
    effectively at controlling or reducing fevers, it is very rare
    (although not impossible) to have sterility result from *either* the
    mumps or chicken pox.
    
    One of those left over medical fears (like burning the bed-clothes of a
    scarlet fever patient) from days of yore.
    
    				Wendy

    Physicians differ immensely on the period of contagiousness with
    chickenpox. All say it's contagious before you break out, but differ on
    how long before. I've heard everything form one week, to 8 - 12 hours!
    Big difference! Most doctors today will tell you that kids are not
    contagious once they break out, *but* they still recommend isolating
    them! Day cares and schoold certainly insist on it, until the pox have
    scabbed over.
    
    Infection is air-borne, so no actual physical contact must be made.
    Yes, you certainly can catch them in a grocery store or restaurant. 
    
    If infected, incubation (time from infection to actual breakout in
    spots) is 14 - 21 days. If one child in a family catches them, and
    another gets them from that child, it would be 2 -3 weeks form date of
    infection to breakout. Assuming you can catch them up to a week before
    you break out, the *soonest* you'd expect to see spots on the sibling
    would be one week from date that first child broke out. I could be up
    to 3 weeks, and I've personally known a teenager, who was only exposed
    to one kid with them (babysat for her the entire 24 hours before she
    broke out), didn't ge tthem by the end of three wekks, and thought she
    was home free... only to get them in 4 weeks! So, times are
    approximate, but usually pretty accurate.
    
    I would not purposely expose others to my child if they actually had
    broken out, unless the parents of the kids really wanted me to. But I
    wouldn't sit at home waiting for them to break out either. It's a real
    tough call. When you say *next Friday*, do you mean the 8th?, or do you
    mean the 1st (tomorrow)? If next Friday, your second child will
    probably have already broken out, if infected at the same time as his
    sibling, but may not have if he catches them from her. I'd personally
    probably plan on going, and then seeing what develops. If he does get
    them and gets very ill, you could come home, although that is obviously
    not what anyone would want.
    
    Let us know what you decide.
    
    --dave--

    A co-worker just showed me a medical book which states:
    
    "Chicken Pox is spread by droplets from the mouth or throat or by
    direct contact with contaminated articles of clothing".
    
    Doesn't that mean that it is not contagious by just being in the
    environment?
    
    Jill
    

    I grew up as one of eight siblings in a 2 bedroom apartment.  I
    eventually got all the various diseases but some of my brothers and
    sisters didn't.  We certainly did not get them all at the same time. 
    Usually, if one came down with something, one or two others would too. 
    Sometimes you were all alone in your misery.
    
    I would certainly never knowingly take a child with a contagious 
    disease in any public place but neither would I sit home because my
    child MIGHT be contagious.  As a kid I'd never been able to leave the
    house if my mother had thought like that :-)  But, IF I were pregnant
    and IF there were diseases like this that I had not had, _I_ would
    certainly avoid public places.  I can't expect everybody else to look
    after my health.  The best I can do is look after it myself.
    
    According to my medical dictionary, chicken pox are particularly
    dangerous to pregnant women who have not had them towards the end of
    their pregnancy when the disease in particularly violent and may pass
    through to the child.  It is passed by air droplets.  So if you think
    your child might be exposed, avoid pregnant women.
    
    And, lastly, chicken pox can re-occur in adults in a form called herpes
    zoster, better known as shingles.  Shingles is a recurrent disease
    which can cause chicken pox or varicella zoster in people who have not
    previously had chicken pox.  So pregnant women, even if they've had
    chicken pox, should be careful of people who have shingles.  They can
    get shingles (or chicken pox if they haven't had them) and pass chicken
    pox to the baby.
    
    Cheryl

re: .14

>So pregnant women, even if they've had chicken pox, should be careful of
>people who have shingles.  They can get shingles (or chicken pox if they
>haven't had them) and pass chicken pox to the baby.

Cheryl,

Are you sure?

My children's cases of chicken pox resulted from my case of shingles, but my
understanding is that you can't get shingles from another person who has
shingles.  Instead, you get them from the zoster virus that is already in your 
body.  My understanding is that when you've had chicken pox, the virus
never leaves your body, but instead goes dormant and remains in nerve cells;
that's the reason that cases of shingles are very painful and very localized. 
In my case, it was so localized that it looked like someone had drawn a
horizontal line down the middle of my nose.

Clay

My experience and what I was told by my doctor matches (except for the degree
of localization  8^{(  ) with what Clay said.

You can get chicken pox from someone who has shingles if you never had it.  A
first infection of the virus is always referred to as chicken pox.  If you have
had chicken pox, you can get shingles only from some internal change, which
causes the virus to reactivate.  You can not reactivate the virus by exposure to
someone with chicken pox or shingles.

Dick

Sorry, Clay and Dick are correct.  But women who have NOT had chicken pox 
and are pregnant should be aware of the connection between chicken pox and
shingles.  

Thanks for the better information.

Cheryl

    	I've mentioned this in the previous volume, but some of us (we are
    rare) actually get *chicken pox* more than once. I've had it twice, my
    brother's had it twice. And my brother and mother have had shingles
    (comes as no surprise) apparently my family has some sort of genetic
    predisposition to getting that virus.

    	Each time seems to be less severe but I've been told to *not* be
    around anyone who has chicken pox. Of course when the time comes for
    Spencer to get it, just see how far away I'll keep. ;-)

			Wendy

    
    
    
    I have a slight dilemma and was wondering if anyone else has
    run into the same problem I have or if anyone could give me
    some advice.
    
    My son is being baptized this coming Sunday and I had invited
    my closest relatives and friends.  My brother in-law called up
    last nite to tell my husband that they would be coming but
    his oldest daughter (he has 2 girls: 1 is 5yrs old the other
    is 3) has had the chicken pox for 1 1/2 weeks and his other
    daughter has not had them (yet).  When I found this out I
    told my husband to tell him to leave his kids at home because
    of the risk of Nicholas (my 9 week old) getting the chicken
    pox.  Everyone thinks i'm overreacting and I don't think 
    that I am - I feel i'm being cautious.  This is a 9week
    old not a 9 year old, couldn't he get really sick possibly?
    I had the chicken pox when I was 4 and never forgot how
    sick I was - ran a fever and everything.  People are
    telling me that he's going to have to get them sooner or
    later but I think this is too soon.  This is my first
    child so maybe I am being overprotective but I really
    don't feel that I am.  I will be calling my prediatrician
    (hoping that he agrees to have the kids stay at home)
    to find out what he says, since i'm not a doctor.
    
    Just wanted to get other people's advice/ .02 on this.
    
    Thanks!
    Chris

    Chris,
    
    You are *not* being over protective and your doctor will more than 
    likely agree with you.  It drives me crazy when someone says "they're 
    going to have to get them sooner or later".  Why?!
    I volunteer at Childrens Hospital and when children there have been 
    exposed to chicken pox, they are isolated from everyone else.  Volunteers 
    and even nurses are not allowed in the room unless they've had chicken 
    pox.  This is for kids who've just been exposed as well as the ones who 
    have full blown chicken pox.  Chicken Pox can be passed through the air 
    and before you actually "break out".
    
    Marie

    
    The child that has had them for 1-1/2 weeks is no longer contagious, as
    you're contagious before you actually break out in the spots.  The
    incubation period is 7-10 days, I think, but please confirm with
    your ped., thus if the other child hasn't gotten them yet, there is no
    chance that he will at this time.
    
    Yes, it can be pretty frightening exposing your infant to this disease,
    but from what you describe there doesn't seem to be any danger.  I
    personally had the chicken pox when I was 6 months old and again when I
    was 7.  I don't recall either time, and have been told that I smiled
    and laughed through it as a baby, so it couldn't have been so bad.  But
    all people are different.....  I had them again (according to the dr.)
    cause I was too young to develop the immunity to it.
    
    Good luck in making your decision....
    -Diane
    

    >The child that has had them for 1-1/2 weeks is no longer contagious, as
    >you're contagious before you actually break out in the spots.  The
    >incubation period is 7-10 days, I think, but please confirm with
    >your ped., thus if the other child hasn't gotten them yet, there is no
    >chance that he will at this time.
     
    Parts of this are true and parts are not.  The child is no longer
    contagious only if the spots are scabbed over (and I would assume that
    they are by this time).  Also, the incubation period is 21 days, not 7
    to 10 so the other child does have a chance of getting them and being
    contagious at the time of your childs christening.
    
    I agree, tell them to leave the children at home.
    
    Lori B.

re: .19

IMO, there's more to think about than just your child.  Seems to me it would
be relatively easy to keep the (potentially) infected children away from the
baby.  But there may be other people attending that should avoid exposure to
chicken pox -- elderly people who haven't had it, for example.  Some doctors
think that pregnant women should avoid exposure.  I doubt that you have any
way of knowing if there are any such folks.

Some people INTENTIONALLy expose their kids to chix.  But that should be
their decision, not forced upon them.

Perhaps you could have some sort of get-together with them in a few weeks.

re: .20

I don't think the attitude is so much "they're going to get them anyway" as
it is a belief (justified, IMO) that it's better to get the chicken pox as
a child than as an adult.  I believe there was a rather extensive discussion
about this in V3.  As for isolating kids who either had, or had been exposed
to, chicken pox, my understanding of the reason for that is that chicken pox
is highly contagious, but a relatively harmless disease for people with
healthy immune systems, but can be rather serious if the person has a
weakened immune system.  Since many kids in hospitals have weakened immune
systems, isolating an infected person (as I assume they would do with someone
who had pretty much any highly contagious disease) makes sense.  When my kids
has chix, the doctor diagnosed them over the phone, which is consistent,
since there would be little reason to bring them in and risk exposing some
sick kid, only to have him say "Yep, s/he's got chicken pox."  

Clay

    Well, I had chicken pox as an adult and I'm here to tell you it was no
    fun.  Not only was I sick as a dog, but I had to put up with much
    ridicule while lying in a college infirmary with the pox.  The doctor
    who diagnosed me even laughed!  We're certainly not considering
    intentionally exposing Michael, but I do hope he gets it while he's
    still a child.
    
    Re the incubation period:  Michael was exposed a couple of months ago,
    and our doctor told us the incubation period was about a week.  He
    didn't get it, so I can't give first-hand experience, just what the dr.
    said.  BTW, I had always heard 21 days myself.
    
    One other thing I was thinking about.  Are you nursing your 9 week old? 
    If so, then wouldn't your immunity to chicken pox be passed to your
    child through the milk?
    
    Steve

    Chicken pox is currently going around at my kid's daycare.  There have
    been diagnosed cases in my 4 month old son's class, as well as my 2
    year old daughter's class.  I asked my pedi about the chances of my son
    and/or daughter getting them, and was told that the 2 year old had a
    better chance of getting them than the 4 month old does.  Apparently
    the 4 month old should still has some immunities left over from birth.
    
    FWIW,
    
    -Joy

    Chris,
    
    This past Easter I ended up not visiting with my mom and dad because my
    sister had called my and said that my 1 year old nephew had been
    exposed to the chicken pox at his daycare.  (My sister and her family
    were going to be spending Easter with my parents). After she had told me 
    this, I called our Pedi to find out the incubation period. His response was
    up to 22 days.  My husband and I chose not to expose Nathan (11 months)
    to the possibility of chicken pox because he has just gotten over a
    long battle with ear infections.
    
    It has now been over a month and my nephew has not developed the
    chicken pox, but I am glad we did not take the chance as we finally
    have our healthy, happy son back again.
    
    Julie

First, it is very likely that your immunity will protect your child.  So, I
wouldn't worry a lot.  (Elise has been exposed 4 or 5 times and hasn't yet
gotten it.  Once she was playing kissy-face with a boy who broke out in pox
the next day.  She will probably get it sometime.  And BTW, my husband had
it as an adult.  Not good.  I was scared; almost called 911 because he was
having trouble breathing.)

Second, I personally think it is considerate of people to stay home if there is
a chance of infecting someone else.  I think you have two choices:  ask them
not to bring the children (which you've done), or inform all of your guests as to
the situation, so they can choose not to attend.  I think the second choice
sucks, personally; talk about ruining the day for you and your husband.

The only other thing I can think of is to call your own pediatrician for advice.
Explain the situation and see what they think.  If they think it's ok, then
let the kids go, otherwise hold fast (and you'll have expert advice to back you
up).

Good luck.  This sort of thing happens all the time - I've gotten more than one
phone call telling me the kid Elise played with on Tuesday had the chicken pox
or something on Thursday.

    I'M  a new noter, HI.  I have two small kids (I call them birth
    control) my daughter is 20 mos and son is 34 mos.  He had the pox when
    he was 17 mos and it was not bad at all very easy to control.  I was
    told that he may still be able to get them again because he was under
    18 mos.  Is that true, I think the question confused my pedi when I
    asked him.  If it is true then I want both my kids exposed to them now
    before they get into school and get it over with!!

    
    My sister (29 yrs) got the chickenpox this past Christmas. I was the
    one who had to tell her to stay away and not join us for the
    celebration. It was a tough decision but it was the right one. Patrick
    stayed healthy and we got together a month later and laughed about it.
    
    Chris
    

    Here's another noter coming out of the woodwork to give advice,
    undoubtedly too late for the person with the issue, but...  
    
    Both of my boys, aged 4 yrs. and 2 1/2 yrs. have come through the
    chicken pox disease well enough to say they've had it this past
    February.  My older son, Patrick, who had it first, didn't seem to 
    suffer much, but my poor 2 1/2 year old, Billy, was so, so sick, 
    I couldn't imagine being anywhere but at home with him.  Billy broke out 
    exactly two weeks after the first spots on Patrick.  
    
    The point here is that the disease might be an inconvenience for us
    while we're working, juggling the house, and desparately needing a
    vacation, but we have to stop and think about the kid too (not to mean
    that you haven't thought about your kid).  Would you want to be traveling 
    in a car somewhere when you're so sick, the only place you'd like to be 
    is in your own bed?  I think this is the part of the sacrifices we're 
    to make as parents.  No one ever said it was fair.
    
	Just my own .02!
    
    	      Jean
    

    From base Noter:
    
    Yes, we did go on vacation and yes, Andrew did get the chicken pox
    while we were away.  We arrived on Saturday and he started getting
    spots on Tuesday. On Wednesday he got more and by Thursday they were
    mostly scabbed over and by Friday scabs were coming off.  It was the
    fastest case of chicken pox I've ever seen (I'm attributing it to the
    sun and salt water).  When we arrived back home on Monday, our
    relatives found it hard to believe he even had them - you really
    couldn't tell by looking at him.
    
    Luckily, Andrew did not get sick at all.  It did not impact our
    vacation in any way.  We still went to the beach (off season,
    hardly anyone around), we did not go to restaurants,stores, etc
    for two days.  The condo we stayed at had a large balcony for the
    kids to play on, so they were able to be outside, yet not be near
    anyone.  By the weekend, he was fine and we drove home most of the
    day on Saturday and on Sunday we stopped in Pennsylvania to go to
    Sesame Place and drove the rest of the way home Sunday night.
    
    I'm glad we decided to take the chance and go on vacation, since we
    all had a great time and great weather too.  Now that the chicken pox
    are behind us, I can comfortably plan a trip to Disney in a few years!
    
    Jill
    
    

    
    I should ask my doctor about this, but he is on vacation, and I don't
    have the on-call doctor's phone number with me.  
    
    My daughter just got over Roseola, which a form of chicken pox.  Does
    this mean that she is immune to chicken pox now?  She is almost 9
    months old.
    
    Thanks
    Charlotte

    
    
    Nope, absolutely not, even though they are both fruit, you're still
    talking about apples and kiwis here.
    
    			Wendy

    And when you have chicken pox before a year old, you sometimes don't
    develop a permanent immunity to it anyway. 
    
    --bonnie

    And sometimes when you are older too ....
    
    I've had chicken pox twice, measles twice, mumps twice, german measles
    a host of times ...
    
    So, no you don't always get permanent immunities.
    
    

    Well, they are making the rounds again.  My sister (age 29) and her
    daughter (age 18 months) just broke out with them yesterday!  My sister
    has been put on some kind of medication to minimize the effects (she
    just found out last week she is pregnant - probably about 4 weeks
    along).  Her husband has to take the medication, too - he has never had
    them either.
    
    Here comes the benedryl, aveeno bath, and itchies!!!
    
    -sandy
    

    There's a wildfire epidemic of c-pox at my son's school right now. Of 
    22 kids in his class, only 10 are there today, and most of the absentees 
    have the pox! Daniel has just recovered from it, and several other kids 
    had them two or three weeks ago. This is the worst outbreak I can recall. 
    
    Now my question: does anyone have experience with people on chemotherapy 
    having to avoid exposure to c-pox, even if they have already had the 
    disease?
    
    My younger child is probably incubating it now, and we are wondering
    whether she can be with her grandmom on Thanksgiving. Grandmom is in 
    the middle of a year of chemo, and is also recovering from surgery. 
    We are consulting her oncologist, but wonder about other experiences.
    
    Lucy

    	It is certainly best to check with your physician, however, I would
    say that it would be best to avoid possible chicken pox contact with
    anyone who is currently are who had recently undergone chemotherapy.

    	The reason for this is that chemotherapy tends to compromise your
    immune system and even if your grandmother had already had the chicken
    pox, her challenged immune state may predispose her to secondary
    infections from the virus (most notably shingles or even a secondary
    case of chicken pox).

    	In this case, I would think that it would be better to be safe than
    sorry.

    
    	Let us know what the physician tells you.
    				Wendy

One of my former bosses found himself in exactly this state and developed 
several severe cases of shingles.  The worst thing about it is that there is 
not much that the doctors could do for him because he had had bone marrow 
transplants and they were rebuilding his immune system.  He just suffered.

ccb

    I didn't think you could "catch" shingles. I have had it, and it was
    explained to me that the virus that causes chicken pox actually remains
    in your system (in the spinal area) and in some percentage of the
    population it will re-occur as shingles when you are an adult. 
    
    It is true, however, that if your immune system is suppressed, as it
    is in AIDS patients, you have a higher chance of having the secondary
    viral infection, shingles, appear. My brother, who volunteers for
    AIDS organizations, was besides himself with worry when I told him I
    had shingles a few years back, because he thought AIDS and shingles
    went together! But it does occur in healthy adults. And it is VERY
    painful, so I don't wish it on anyone. 
    
    If the cancer patient has already had chicken pox, I don't believe
    there could be an infection again. But get the scoop from the medical
    world, since viruses are so tricky. 
    
    Cyn

    	Who really knows about viruses in compromised people?

    	I have had chicken pox twice as has my brother, was it genetics?,
    were we sick with something else at the time? was it a different
    strain? who knows. and there is not a Doctor out there who can tell me
    if I am at risk of getting them (yet again).

    	That being the case, it is not unlikely that a compromised adult
    *could* get Chicken pox again (especially if the virus had mutated
    from the virus that she had as a child - so many years ago).

    	As far as shingles, they *believe* that shingles are "hiding"
    chicken pox viruses in your body. (I have not had shingles but four
    members of my family have and they all say how very, very painful  it
    is).

    	Assuming that you need the virus, it is possible that the
    grandmother's compromised state might allow the shingles to come out of
    hiding especially if any more stress is put on it (again a mutated
    virus would work nicely here).

    	There are so many factors and permeations of what could *possibly*
    happen that again, it most probably wise to be safe than sorry.

    				Wendy

Chicken pox and shingles are two related very close viruses.  GENERALLY people
can get chicken pox once but shingles can be gotten over and over.  

My boss, as I said before, had bone marrow transplants.  When they transplant 
bone marrow, it completely destroys the immune system of the patient.  During
the recovery, the patient is treated like a baby.  They are first put on baby 
formula and then gradually have other foods introduced to avoid invoking an
allergic response.  The body is left to fight off most infections to redevelop
the immune system.

In my bosses case, he was more susceptible to the shingles virus than the 
chicken pox virus but he could easily have gotten chicken pox too.

By the way, his susceptibility was due more to the bone marrow transplants than 
the chemo therapy that he underwent in addition.

ccb

Sorry Cheryl ... this is not a pick on you, but the earlier descriptions
are correct.

Chicken pox is caused by the Herpes Zoster virus (yes, the same family
as Herpes Simplex ... the cold sore and venereal kinds).

After a chicken pox infection, rarely does the body actually eradicate
the invading virus.  The virus manages to disguise itself in the body
so it is not attacked by the immune system and in so doing becomes
dormant.

After many years, the virus may re-emerge from the dormant state and
re-infect the body.  In this instance, the body reaction to the virus
is no longer the classic chicken pox reaction, but the shingles reaction.
It is only the reaction that has changed ... it is still the same Herpes
Zoster virus.

For those unlucky few of us that catch chicken pox more than once (myself
included ... I was a sickly kid!) there are a couple of possibilities ...
the first, as Wendy suggested, a sufficiently different strain of Herpes
Zoster, that the body's immune system does not recognize.  

The second possibility is that you do not receive sufficient immunity from 
a first infection, you can actually become reinfected and will suffer a 
classic chicken pox reaction again.  The reason for not being "immune" to 
shingles is that you actually are ... just in this case ... when the virus 
emerges from dormancy, it does so in such numbers that your immune system 
is actually destroying an existing (although dormant) large infection, as 
opposed to a small external source infection.  i.e. if someone were to
infect someone immune to chicken pox with a sufficiently high dose of
the virus again, they would get a shingles reaction.

Stuart

    We are leaving for Florida on Sunday, and this morning the day care
    informed me that there is Chicken Pox in the school.  My kids have not
    had Chicken Pox yet, so they could get it.  If they do get it, and if
    they react like their older sister did, they will not be all that
    uncomfortable, so we would probably want to go ahead with the vacation. 
    She barely ran a fever, and didn't really lose any spunk, either. 
    Drove me crazy, because if anything she got cabin fever!

    But, will they be allowed on the plane?

    Thanks
    Debby

    It's a tough call, but I personally would be upset if I or my family
    were exposed to something like this unknowingly.  It is best to keep
    the kids out of the public area once they break out.  It would be too
    hard to keep them clear just because they were exposed. 
    
    In my sister's case - she was exposed to them unknowingly and she never
    had them before.  Unfortunately, she got them during her first month of
    pregnancy.  The effects are yet to be seen.  The baby isn't due until
    June!  Please be considerate of others especially if you KNOW you have
    them.
    
    -sandy (who will anxiously wait 7 more months to see if they have
    caused any damage...)
    

    re 77.37 and my question about chemo patients - my mother-in-law's
    oncologist said not to worry, it's OK for Charlotte to visit her,
    even though she (Charlotte) may be incubating c-pox. No details
    available.
    
    Lucy

    re: .44
    >But, will they be allowed on the plane?
    
    I can't speak from personal experience but the director of our
    daycare center told me about her experience with chicken pox.
    She came down with them while on vacation and was told by the
    airline personnel that she could not fly until she was no longer
    contagious.  I'm not sure where she was staying or what airline
    she used but it was within the United States.
    
    Ruth

    Well I have the answer to the plane question:  No, they will not be
    allowed on the plane.
    
    The kids were spot-free, and not acting at all sick when we left for
    Florida.  We were there about a week and a half before both kids broke
    out.  When we called the airline we were told that we would have to
    re-schedule our flight and would be expected to have a doctor's note
    when we did try to board the plane.

    Does anyone know what the right conditions are for a child to come down
    with chicken pox.  My daugher has been exposed numerous times (again,
    just this past monday) to children who have had chicken pox.  She has
    never come down with them?   Is it possible for a child to be exposed,
    develop immunities and never actually get spots?
    
    Just Curious,
    Sarah

    It's the luck of the draw.  Mine, too, were exposed many times
    knowingly.  However, they both came down with them when I least
    expected it!  They were not particularly run-down, or sick, or anything
    else - they just got them.  I don't think it was age because they got
    them at the same time (one was 4 and the other 5) and they were both
    exposed at different times.
    
    -sandy
    

    I understood that it is spread through coughing / sneezing primarily,
    since some of its minor symptoms are cold like.  The other major
    source of spreading is contact by touching the burst pox blisters
    then touching someone else.
    
    It is *possible* to get chickenpox sufficiently mildly to not show
    typical pox.  From such an exposure, depending on how large the
    exposure, you may or may not develop any immunity.
    
    Sometimes the kid is just plain lucky!
    
    Stuart
    

    
    
    	I was exposed to chicken pox a thousand times growing up. NEVER got
    them.  My mother thought that maybe I had a mild case as a baby, but
    since I was one of five, she couldn't remember which one of us that happend
    to.
    
    	I ended up with a full blown case at 22, the week after I graduated
    from college.  A couple of months before that, I was with my niece who
    had a bad case, but never got them from her.  I have NO IDEA how I got
    them!!!  But, I wish I had them as a kid, they were MISERABLE as an
    adult.
    
    	Justine
                                                                   

    Well, it has been over a month since the kids had the chicken pox, and
    I am now wondering about scars.  My oldest daughter, who is now 18, had
    chicken pox well over a decade ago and I just don't remember how long
    it took the scars to fade away.  My son has a few which I am pretty
    sure will be permanent, since they have an indent to them.  But what
    about the ones where the skin is perfectly smooth, just spotted?  The
    faces don't have much of that, but their backs are covered.

    I know that any skin which is healing will be white, but I am curious
    what others with more recent experience than mine might remember.
    
    Thanks
    Debby

    Debby,
    
    It took both my kids 2-3 months to have those spots faded.  They
    both had it in Aug. and are gone now.  
    
    Wendy

   Sounds about right... I had chicken pox at the beginning of November,
   and as far as I can tell, there is only the remains of 1 spot left on
   my stomach, and that's pretty faded now.
   
   - Tom

    OK.  I won't panic yet.  Not that there's much I can do about it
    anyway.
    
    Thanks for the replies.
    
    Debby

    Debby,
    I have a chicken pox scar. (small round dent in my nose, not very
    noticable, but definitely a scar) - and I am 34 today.....
    
    Monica

    I read through all the notes and didn't see this advice.

    Our Anna currently has chicken pox.....what remedies do you
    recommend to both keep her most comfortable AND to minimize
    the possiblity of any scarring.

    Someone mentioned an 'aveeno bath'?  We have been giving her
    Benadryl at night, plus some tylenol.

    Our Katie had them at 4 months and has not gotten them again,
    so I guess that early immunity worked.
    thanks
    bob

    The Aveeno Oatmeal bath is great - really helped my kids.  I gave it to
    them before bedtime each night - the tub gets really slippery so hold
    on to them well!
    
    Benadryl is fine just DON'T use a topical ointment like Calo-Hist along
    with it.  I just used another Aveeno lotion if they needed it.  (The
    antihistimine in Benadryl taken internally + a topical application of
    antihistimine can result in an overdose).
    
    My two youngest have no scars at all.  My oldest purposely picked a pox
    inbetween his eyebrows as he wanted a scar to "match Dad's"!  Other
    than that he's scar free.
    
    Good luck!
    
    Linda

    As I've mentioned earlier, the jury is still out on scarring with my
    two youngest, but...  When my oldest had Chicken Pox it was May/June
    and a warm one at that.  We kept the wading pool full of tepid water
    and baking soda, and let her come and go at will.  At that point I had
    heard of oatmeal baths but had not heard of Aveeno.  I was not about to
    fill my bathtub with Quaker Oatmeal!!!!
    
    fwiw:
    A friend of my husband's claims she put oatmeal in a nylon stocking and 
    used that to rub her son's back, and that he has no scarring on his
    back.  We didn't do that, so I have no clue how accurate the claim is.

    As someone had mentioned before,c-pox is caused by a virus,that
    sometimes just "hangs around" and may break out one day at older age.
    This is why doctors here in Israel do NOT recomend parents to expose
    thier kids to c-pox.Most scars are caused because c-pox is "itchy",and
    young kids tend to "itch" and so peel off the dots.During the day,it's
    "don't itch",but during the night? so.my mom put socks on our hands
    when we had them (all 3 of us at the same time...),and so even if we 
    DID try to,we just couldn't itch them off,and non of us had any scars
    left.I do recomend the "socks method" to my friends,and it always
    works.
    just my 0.02 (in israeli NS. it's not much,but...)
    r/

    clever - that would have worked on me - I am a classic scratcher,
    (even now!) and yes, that is what caused the small scar on my nose.
    Thanks for the idea, Rivka.
    
    Monica

    I can't persuade my daughter to keep on her mittens when it's 10
    degrees outside.  I can see it now,
    
    "Ilona, don't you DARE take those socks off your hands again.  
    You'll get ugly boo-boos if you scratch your face."
    
    -
    
    "OKay, one more time.  Maybe the rubber band around the wrist will help
    persuade you.  Do what I say!  You want to stay pretty don't you?"
    
    -
    
    "Aaaaagh!  If you INSIST on taking off the socks, just be sure to
    vacuum up the scabs from your bedsheets."
    
    Well, there's always aloe and hope.  :-)
    
    L

    My sister's kids had the chicken pox last summer (6 yr old, 2 yr. old,
    and 1 yr. old). For the 6 yr. old, my sister said they ended up staying
    up most of the night and baking muffins for Daddy (since her daughter
    couldn't sleep through the worst/only night of itchiness). For her 2
    yr. old, she did the socks-on-the-hands routine and used medical tape
    to secure them (She told her little boy that he was a 'cool-dude' just
    like a Ninja Turtle and that was enough to keep the socks on til he
    dropped off to sleep). She didn't do anything special with the 1 yr.
    old (besides the Aveeno batch, Benedryl that she was doing for the
    other 2 kids) but he was so little the whole illness made him sleep
    most of the time anyway.               

    My 3-year old son just came down with c-pox last night.  Does he need
    to be kept home?  The two kids at his day care already had them, and so
    has the provider, so there isn't a risk of infecting others. I'm
    wondering if there is a secondary infection associated with the pox? He
    doesn't have a fever, says he feels fine, and is a tad itchy.
    Sarah

    If he is in a small group setting and the provider (as well as the
    other parents) don't mind, he should be able to go if HE feels like
    going.  Sometimes they just want to be home if they are really sick
    with them.  Depends on the kid.  The reason I say check with the other
    parents is you wouldn't want to send an infected kid in where others
    can carry the infection home to family members who haven't had it!
    
    -sandy
    

Those who have had chicken pox *usually* don't get it again, but sometimes
they do.

      Carol

    Any idea why you can't put hydrocortisone preps. on chicken pox? I was
    reading the back of the Benadryl 1% ointment, and it specifically says
    not to put it on chicken pox except under a doctor's supervision.  My
    son is literally covered with spots, and some are causing him immense
    grief.  On the worst ones, I've been spritzing him with Medi-Quik (has
    lidocaine for pain/itch relief).  I also saw some new things my J&J
    called "no more itchies" "no more ouchies" and "no more burn", and
    thought I'd try one, but the itchies prep. also has hydrocortisone. The
    burn prep. has lidocaine, so it may be the same as medi-quik.  Any o
    ther suggestions to get him through this? The oatmeal baths don't help,
    and calamine lotion is useless as well.  It's only about 6 spots that
    are really bad, like along his waist-band line, behind his ears, and
    behind his knees.
    Sarah

    Sarah,
    
    I feel for your son (and you too...) -- we went through this last
    fall. If I remember right, the reason you should not apply cortisone
    to each spot is that it is easily absorbed through the skin and
    could result in an overdose. That's why they recommend taking it
    orally (as Benadryl, or whatever), so the child gets one systemic
    dose.
    
    Lucy

    It still isn't clear to me how long BEFORE a child breaks out
    with chicken pox he/she was actually contagious.
    
    All the family kids were together last Sunday for Easter, and
    this morning (Friday) my niece came down with chicken pox.  
    
    Were my kids exposed?
    
    jacki
    

the contagious part is when there is a fever...when the fever breaks, then the
rash appears.

Michael

    
    
    For those of you who may want to know if you have
    an immunity to Chicken Pox, there is a simple blood
    test.
    
    When I was pregnant with my son, I was exposed 3
    times to someone who came down with CP.  So before
    this pregnancy I asked my doctor for a blood test.
    It's turns out that I do have an immunity to CP
    even though I do not recall ever having them.  
    
   Jeanne
    

    
    If you're around a kid with chicken pox (actually broken out), or 24-36
    hours BEFORE the sick child breaks out, then you are considered
    exposed.  There is a 2-week incubation period.  Thus if you are
    "exposed" to someone with chicken pox on the 10th, you can expect to
    start seeing yourself break out ~the 24th.  
    
    That's what my Dr. said, and that's how long it took the first kid to
    give it to the second.  

    Let's see, we went in a 3-week cycle with our bout.  Nephew #1 came
    down with it 3 weeks after finding out one of the kids at daycare
    "just" broke out.  3 weeks to the day, nephew #2 broke out. My son had
    spent the night with nephew #2 the evening before the spots appeared. 
    3 weeks to the day later, my son got his first spot.
    
    Another question - my mother remarked that fair skinned kids always
    "seem" (she's not standing firm, just anecdotal evidence) to get a
    worse case than dark skinned kids.  My son is very pale - one relative
    calls him "paper white", and he was covered head to toe.  My nephews are
    very dark skinned and had only a handful of spots. What's been your
    experience?
    
    Sarah 
    
    

    Daughter and son both fair skin, daughter had about 3 spots, son was
    covered from head to toe.
    
    Judie
    
    

    My youngest, Kevin, got them almost 3 weeks after Chris got them. I
    was told that they are still contagious until the spots scab up.
    The fluid within the spots can pass on the chicken pox.
    
    We gave them a bath together just to make sure Kevin got them, so that
    we would have them out of the way. Chris, 2 1/2 years old, got most
    of them on his scalp!! He was great about not scratching. And was in
    good spirits throughout it. But Kevin, then 9 months, did not fair
    so well. He was pretty cranky the whole time. He seemed to get them
    a lot worse too.
    
    It seems the normal time period is between 2 and 3 weeks after
    exposure!
    
    -Sheila
    

    Both of mine are very fair-skinned, neither had them very bad.  Jason
    had them worse because he was still in diapers at the time, and the
    diaper area was the worst - any place that got "hot" got more spots. 
    It was summer, so we just kept them in their pool, with a little baking
    soda, and they were none the worse for wear.

    OK, guess Mom's theory isn't going to attract the attention of the AMA
    : )

    
    There is a medicine which is available which will shorten the duration
    of chicken pox.  I believe, however, that most parents will only get a
    prescription from the physician only if they request it.  
    
    The name of the medicine is Acyclovir--brand name Zovirax.  It is a
    medication which is used for herpes simplex--generally bad cold sores
    around the facial area.  It workes best as the individual is beginning
    to get the chicken pox.  It can cut the duration down from 7 to 10 days
    to 4.  
    
    I had chicken pox several years ago after my son had it, and the
    medication had cut the duration to 3 days.  I recommended it to a work
    associate and she got the prescription for her daughter who had chicken
    pox for only 4 days.  
    
    Perhaps one of the reasons that the physicians don't recommend it, is
    they consider Chicken pox a mild childhood disease and the prescription
    is expensive.  However, if you have more than one in your household who
    come down with it and you can only miss so many days at work, it maybe
    a good idea to inquire about.
    
    
    			Regards,
    
    				and hopefully less itching!!!
    
    
    						Darlene

    Thanks Darlene for some neat information.
    
    Come to think of it, use of Zovirax for chicken pox is not so
    surprising; The virus is in the same family with those for herpes
    simplex and shingles.
    
    I hope I remember this.  So far as I know, Zoviraz (acyclovir) has no
    counter-indications for adults.  I can't even recall any complications
    from using it.  It may well be safe for children.
    
    If you use this drug, just remember that each individual and each
    infection is different.  Hopefully, it would reduce duration and
    severity, but there are no guarantees.
    
    Laura
    

    My sister caught the chicken pox the first month of her pregnancy and
    was given medication to keep the effects to a minimum.  I thiink this
    is the one.  Her daughter caught them at the same time, and both cases
    were mild - mom was medicated, daughter was not.
    
    -sandy
    

My six year old nephew was just diagnosed with ENSEPHILITIS.  The only details
I've gotten is that he has the Chicken Pox and Saturday was very delirious.
He was taken to the Hospital and they said that he was dehydrated (from Potasium
loss) caused from the Chicken Pox.  The next day he was diagnosed with 
Ensephilitis.  

Does anyone know anything about this?  I would appreciate any information.
We are very concerned.  He lives in Texas and we feel so helpless out here.

Thanks,
Rosemarie

There is an epidemic of Chicken Pox going around at the Nursery School that
my 3 1/2 year old daughter attends.  

I am 7 months pregnant and was wondering if my daughter does get the chicken
Pox, can it be passed to my unborn child?  I already had the chicken pox
as a child but was worried about the possibility of me passing it on to the
baby.

If anyone has any info on this, I would really appreciate it.

Rosemarie

    This topic has been discussed before, probably in the previous
    version of PARENTING.
    
    But,  I asked my doctor about this when my neice came 
    down with the chicken pox.  My doctor said that the baby
    was not in danger since I had already had the chicken pox.
    
    But I still kept my distance from my neice  :-)
    
    	Linda

I'm sure that somebody has better information than me, but it's my 
understanding that a fetus has the same immunities as the mother, and even 
retains them for a while after birth (a period which is extended somewhat if 
the mother breast feeds).  If there is a concern with contagious diseases, it 
is that some of them (especially measles) are associated with birth defects, 
but I'm pretty sure that is much more of a concern in the early months of 
pregnancy.

I believe there was a discussion, either in this topic or in an earlier 
version of Parenting, about whether exposure to chicken pox was dangerous for 
pregant women.  If I remember correctly, opinion among doctors seemed to be 
somewhat divided.

Clay

    I called my doctor last week and they told me it is dangerous at 
    the end of a pregnancy more so than the beginning.  I am having 
    the blood test for immunity in 2 weeks.  I am 3 months pregnant
    and was exposed the 6th.  I'd call your doctor and ask.

    My five year old son, Michael just got over the Chicken Pox (now
    we're home today with the flu) :^( .  He had a miserable case that
    began, I suspect, on Thursday, June 3rd. He woke up in the morning
    with two 'bug-bite' like marks on one foot. Since my daughter is
    the one that *ALWAYS* gets bit first, I checked her out and nothing.
    Figuring it was a fluke, I sent Michael to school and left bug bombs
    out in the house.
    
    Friday morning I had to go on a business trip and when I arrived 
    back on Sunday, Michael was covered with Pox. My husband said Mike
    was fine on Friday and Saturday he was a little lethargic and Sunday
    really started to break out. 
    
    By Thursday Michael was still breaking out in blisters and his feet
    were so bad that her hadn't slept in two nights despite the benedryl,
    tylenol and various medicinal baths every few hours. We had a weekend
    of waterskiing a state away scheduled for Friday, Sat and Sun, so I
    called the Dr. and asked for Zovrax since his blisters were not
    scabbing over on his feet, but my request was denied. We called the
    family who we were going with that we would have to cancel but they
    said it wouldn't be a problem since they were the people that would
    be exposed to Michael during the trip. So we left Friday afternoon 
    for Lake Mead, Nevada. By this time Michael is feeling fine but his
    feet still hadn't scabbed so we kept water shoes on him, plenty of 
    sunscreen and a hat. He did fine.
    
    As of yesterday, well over a week after his initial breakout, his
    feet still had huge thick blisters that hadn't scabbed over. I think
    the skin on his feet is just too thick to break. It is very
    frustrating. So today his feet finally look good and now he is sick
    with the stomach flu, which my daughter just had.
    
    Good thing I have *LOTS* of vacation time saved up.
     
    Jodi-
    

    
    No problem with the info. Laura.  Yes, it does make sense about chicken
    pox and herpes simplex.
    
    One of the reasons I felt the info might be useful was there also was
    a study done having children use Acyclovir--I believe in Britain. 
    This was a few years ago.  The conclusion was that it definitely
    reduced the duration plus there were no side affects.
    
    
    					Darlene
    

    Well as I mentioned a reply or two back, my son had the chicken
    pox last week and when, by day five or so, he was still breaking
    out in blisters, I called the doctor and asked for Acyclovir. we
    were leaving on vacation in a day and I wanted to speed things up
    a bit. At first I only got to speak to the nurse who flat out 
    refused to offer Acyclovir as an option saying that many children
    who take it, often do not build up the proper immunities and there
    are many side effects. I argued that Michael already had a monumental
    case of CP and I'm sure lack of immunities wouldn't be a problem.
    I also mentioned that I had read that side effects were nearly
    non-existent. She waffled and finally said she leave a message for
    the doctor. 
    
    Several hours later, the nurse called back, my husband took the
    call as I was out. The nurse claimed that the doctor supported 
    her info and no Acyclovir would be prescribed. 
    
    Michael continued to break out in blisters and was very slow in
    healing (scabbing) for another three days. He was at least comfortable
    and the folks we vacationed with didn't have a problem with the
    fact that Michael *might* still be contagious. We just kept him
    away from crowds until the last day of our trip.
    
    
    Jodi-

    
    Jodi,
    
    Perhaps there are two reasons your doctor was not comfortable
    inprescribing the drug.
    
    1) His probable unfamiliarity with it.
    
    2) The drug works better when taken closer to the on set of the chicken
       pox rather than toward the middle or end of it.
    
    
    		No matter now.  Your son's gone through it and should be
    		okay--and probably will never get it again.
    
    
    					Regards,
    
    					Darlene

>    Perhaps there are two reasons your doctor was not comfortable
>    inprescribing the drug [Acyclovir aka Zovirax].
    
>    1) His probable unfamiliarity with it.

I really doubt that.  Acyclovir has been around a long time; it was mentioned 
as a possibility for treating my case of shingles several years ago.

In addition to your reason #2, I'd guess that his reasoning was exactly what 
was stated -- to let the c.p. "run its course" to ensure complete immunity, 
and additionally, because Acyclovir is, or at least was, an expensive drug.  
I'm neither agreeing nor disagreeing with his conclusion not to prescribe it, 
though.

One thing that bothers me though, is the role of a nurse in prescribing or 
not prescribing drugs.  Nurses are not qualified to prescribe drugs, and it 
seems to me that implies that they are not qualified to determine that drugs 
are not appropriate in a given situation.  It would not object to a nurse's 
informing me that the doctor didn't usually prescribe Acyclovir for c.p., but 
I would strongly object to the nurse's not asking the doctor.

Clay

    I agree with Clay that the cost was probably one of the
    strongest arguments for not starting the drug, especially
    since it was requested late in the course. We are members
    of an HMO and they have taken me off drugs like Seldane
    which have been very beneficial to my severe allergy problems.
    But because of cost, my allergist refused to prescribe it.
    I got around it by going to my HMO general practicioner and
    asking for it from her. She apparently hadn't received the
    memo that said not to prescribe the drug :^).
    
>One thing that bothers me though, is the role of a nurse in prescribing or 
>not prescribing drugs.  Nurses are not qualified to prescribe drugs, and it 
>seems to me that implies that they are not qualified to determine that drugs 
>are not appropriate in a given situation.  It would not object to a nurse's 
>informing me that the doctor didn't usually prescribe Acyclovir for c.p., but 
>I would strongly object to the nurse's not asking the doctor.

    You can bet I was irritated too. Since I wasn't home when the nurse
    called back, I didn't have the opportunity to grill her on whether
    or not she actually did talk to the doctor or ask to speak directly
    to the doctor. 
    
    I'm just happy the Chicken Pox case from "H-E-double hockey sticks"
    is over and my son only sports a couple scars on his darling face.
    
    Jodi-

>>not prescribing drugs.  Nurses are not qualified to prescribe drugs, and it 
>>seems to me that implies that they are not qualified to determine that drugs 
>>are not appropriate in a given situation.  It would not object to a nurse's 


Not completely true in the United States.  Some nurses were given the
authority to prescribe medications in 1992.  I am unclear on the criteria,
altho I believe it is for nurse-practitioners, which are nurses who have
specialized in a specific area and have taken advanced training.

Our pediatrician is in a joint practise with a nurse-practitioner who can
and has prescribed drugs for our children. (It's her signature on the
prescription form).  Also the midwife who delivered Sarah did the
prescription for the yeast infection I had during pregnancy.

So, it just may be that she *is* qualified to prescribe drugs.  But
I don't like being blown off by the supporting nurse either when I 
want to talk to the doctor or the nurse-practitioner.

Pat

    
    I just read through all the replies to this note and I want to make
    sure I have all my facts straight. My daughter was good and exposed
    this weekend to the chicken pox (spent the weekend playing with a
    little girl that went from just broken out to full blown pox). Anyways,
    I want to know if all the following facts are straight...
    
    	1) Exposed July 9th
    	2) Start looking for CP ~2 weeks later (july 23)
    	3) From July 15-19 will be visiting sister and new baby (3 wks old)
    	   This should not be a problem cause incubation period is not over
    	   and baby should be immune from mother (had them) and breast milk
    	4) Once blisterd show inform others exposed 24-36 hours before.
    	5) No longer contagious once blisters scab over (~5-7 days).
    	6) Also if a woman is pregnant but has had the chicken pox then
    	   everything should be okay there.
    
    Are all these facts okay??? Once we realized Anna had been exposed we 
    didn't stop her from playing with the little girl, though no touching
    was allowed. I figured if Anna gets them, then it's done and over with.
    I've got some time I have to use, so I'm not worried about vacation
    time or anything. One more fact check: we go on vacation August 14th.
    If she hasn't gotten them by then (~5weeks) then she probably won't,
    correct???
    
    Patty

    
    I believe that chicken pox incubation is anywhere from 10-21 days; 
    although the 2 weeks you have is about average.   However, our pedi
    said that the 2 weeks should be counted from the day before the
    "exposer" actually started showing a rash.   This is the period in
    which the "exposer" is actually the most contagious and the virus
    is air-borne.  Jason's first pox showed up two weeks *on the nose*
    from the day before the person that he caught them from showed her
    first pox - so his pedi hit it dead right.  
    
    I'd be leary about the visiting the sister/new baby during the
    July 15-19 period personally and would allow the new mother and father
    to make the choice.   
    
    Carol

    
    	I was under the impression that if the child does not get chicken
    pox 10 days after exposure then he will not get it.
    
    	Spencer has been exposed twice and although he *may* have had a
    very mild case ( a few bumps and a fever) he never really broke out.
    And so I expect he will get it again someday. 
    
    	We just let everyone know that Spencer had been exposed and let
    them make the decision of whether to come over or not. Chicken Pox does
    not "jump" and you can not get it by merely being in the same room
    there must be direct contact of some sort.
    
    	Also, I've said it before and no doubt, I'll say it again, I've had
    chicken pox twice and will very likely get it again. Because you never
    know if you are not immune I would never expose a pregnant woman to
    chicken pox even if she has already had them. Why take the chance?
    
    			Wendy

    
    Well, I called the doctor's to get information from them. The nurse
    said the incubation period is 7-21 days. Since Anna's exposure to the
    chicken pox was completely outdoors (we were never in a building/room
    with this child) they said Anna's exposure would be considered mild.
    As to exposing the baby, they said the likelyhood of the baby getting
    them is minimal (if Anna gets them while we're visiting), since the
    baby's immune system is of the mother's because of the breastfeeding.
    They suggested not letting Anna hold or kiss the baby, which doesn't
    look to be a problem since the last baby she saw she kind of ignored.
    Now I just have to talk to my sister and see what she says. I also
    have to prepare myself to stay longer if she does get them while we're
    there cause we're flying. This is a non-problem for me. I'll let you
    all know how it goes.
    
    Patty

    
    Well, everything went off without a hitch. Anna has yet to get the
    chicken pox, her exposure was 2 weeks ago this evening, so we didn't
    get stuck at my sister's house. Now I'm hoping if she does get them
    they'll hold off until Sunday so she won't have exposed the kids at
    daycare. Hey, my first wish came true, why not this one.
    
    Patty

	I've read through the other replies here, but didn't really find
	the information I'm looking for.

	I just found out that my neice and nephew were exposed to chicken
	pox over the weekend.  My brother got sick at a restaurant, and the
	next day he broke out with the chicken pox.  I don't know if my
	neice and nephew played with him, or if they were exposed only
	during dinner.

	My mother babysits my neice and my daughter together two days
	a week.  Do people usually continue to send their exposed children
	to daycare ?  I want to be reasonable, but don't want to run 
	unnecessary risks, either.  I am 20 weeks pregnant, but *do* have
	immunities based on the results of the chicken pox titer.  (Wendy,
	since you say you've contracted chicken pox multiple times, does
	the titer indicate you have immunities ?  Or, do you just not have
	the immunities even though you've had the disease ?)

	I need to call my sister and find out more specifics (the info I
	have was given to me second hand), but I want to be prepared to
	discuss the handling of our shared daycare situation also.

	Karen

    
    >> Do people usually continue to send their exposed children
            to daycare ?
    
    I believe that many people do.   Reason being  that chicken pox
    is considered to be a mild childhood illness that children
    "should" get while young.  (witness people who deliberately 
    expose children to chickenpox to "get it over with").   I personally
    would not deliberately expose someone else's child to the illnesses
    of my child.
    
    Anyways, if your neice is incubating the chicken pox virus, she
    will *probably* not be contagious this week - more likely next
    week.   One other thing to consider is that if they both come
    down with the chicken pox - and don't get real sick with them -
    then you will probably be able to continue to take  Emily to 
    your mother's after the first couple of days of the illness
    since it's a family environment and you won't risk exposing 
    other children.    
    
    Yuck - sticky situation!
    cj/

    
    Karen,
    
    	In response to your question, I do not appear to have the immunity
    even though I have been exposed to and have contracted the disease. I
    don't know what the results of my titer is as it doesn't really matter,
    with a batting average like mine, it is better to assume that I will
    contract it again than not.
    
    			Wendy

    
    When Anna was exposed to chicken pox I continued to send her to
    daycare. Incubation is 7 to 21 days (I called my pediatrician to get
    all the details) with the average being 14 days. If I worried about
    exposing other kids to the possibility of Anna getting the Chicken
    Pox I would have had to keep her out of daycare for at least 2 weeks.
    I neither have the time on the books nor the extra money to pay someone
    to come to my house to cover that. Anna ended up not getting the
    chicken pox, so if I hadd kept her out it all would have been for
    naught. I too am pregnant (8 weeks at the time of Anna's exposure) and
    have had chicken pox.
    
    I would say keep the kids together and if your neice gets the cp, then
    your daughter will have been exposed and then may or may not get them.
    If you have any fears about your pregnancy call your doctor and talk to
    them, but where you have the immunity they'll probably tell you there's
    not a problem.
    
    Patty

    Chances are there's not a problem with your niece getting the chicken
    pox.  From what my pediatrician has told me, chicken pox are not
    contagious until actual outbreak.  My son was exposed several times and
    never got them until this summer, two weeks to the day after he was
    exposed to my friend's daughter during an actual outbreak.  The day
    before he actually broke out with spots, two other little boys were
    with him playing in the pool, they had never had chicken pox before,
    and they didn't get them this time around either.
    
    Lori B.

If every child who was EXPOSED to chicken pox stayed away from daycare and or 
school, that could basically shut down the school or daycare.

If it's in Massachusetts, a child who is INFECTED with chicken pox CANNOT 
attend a public shool or licensed daycare.

Clay 

    
    re: .103
    
    	A person is contagious 24 hours before the actual outbreak.
    	Chicken Pox is an air-borne contagion besides the actual
    	sores. 
    
    Patty

    
    Re .105 (myself)
    
    	This is what I was told by my pediatrician. 

    Well, evidently all pediatricians have different views on when the
    child is actually contagious because more than one doctor told me that
    you were not actually contagious until the actual outbreak.   I've
    also heard from other doctors, that you were contagious from three days
    prior to outbreak until three days after all the sores were scabbed
    over.
    
    Lori B.

    
    ...maybe the most common denominator???? :^)  Who knows????
    
    Patty

	Thanks for all of your replies.

	I didn't really expect my sister to quarantine her children
	while contagious, I just was trying to minimize our risk.

	My sister called her pediatrician, and they said she should watch
	the children closely, and if they begin to appear as though they
	are coming down with something (getting lethargic, etc.), she should then
	try to minimize their exposure to other children.  

	She also wanted me to call and double check with my doctor on my
	immunities, just to put her mind at ease.

	Wendy, I was curious if you knew your titer results because I was
	trying to determine the veracity/validity of the titer, ie, how likely
	is it that someone who shows the immunity through a titer will still
	contract chicken pox.

	Karen

    Well, here's some anecdotal evidence that shows you can be
    contagious at least two days before spots appear.
    
    My husband started feeling like he had a stomach virus on a Sunday.
    My niece Lindsay was visiting that day.  My husband's spots appeared
    two days later, on Tuesday, almost exactly 48 hours after he started
    feeling ill.  Lindsay broke out with spots two weeks later on the
    same day both of my kids got them.
    
    We still sent our kids to daycare even though they had been exposed.
    We let the daycare center know they had been exposed and they said
    it was ok to send them.  They appreciated the warning and watched
    for spots.  Strangely enough, other kids got chicken pox before
    ours did.
    
    A couple of things may have contributed to our daycare's attitude.
    I let them know I could have chosen not to tell them our kids had
    been exposed and just let nature take it's course rather than being
    honest.   And, my husband had dropped off the kids the day his spots
    appeared so the kids in the center had already been exposed.  You
    should have seen the look on the director's face when I told her.
    It was priceless.
    
    Ruth

    As many of you are aware, chicken pox is (are?) making the rounds
    again. I've read the previous replies to this note, but most seem to
    deal with the various aspects of being contagious (timing, duration,
    etc.) I'm looking for more practical info, however, such as:
    	- what did you use to help relieve the itching? 
    	- how did you treat those pox found in sensitive areas (eyelids,
    	  inside mouth, etc.)?
    	- what did you use, if anything, to help heal the scabs and
    	  minimize scarring?
    	- how long after the first spots did you keep your kid(s) out
    	  of school/daycare?
    
    So far, we've tried Aveeno (oatmeal) baths, and have used calahist
    lotion as well as hydrocortosone cream, all with varying degrees of 
    success. Any other tips, hints, cautions to add to our arsenal would
    be appreciated.
    
    Thanks,
    
    Freddie
    
    P.S. Anyone ever heard of using Arrid Extra-dry antipersperant cream
    to treat the blisters before they come to a head? My wife heard of this
    in passing, but I'm somewhat skeptical...   

    I used calydryl (Sp) on my daughter.  She was so young when she
    had them it's hard for me to tell if it stopped this itching.  She
    had them from head to toe (terribly) at 3 or 4 months (I can't remember
    exactly)..I have heard that Aveeno Baths are good.  I think there is
    also some sort of liquid medicine (anti-histamine or something) that
    helps.
    
    I had to keep Samantha out of daycare for 5 days.
    
    

    
    We used oatmeal baths a couple of times a day to relieve the
    itching.   Also, Aveeno anti-itch cream and calamine lotion
    which we let Jason apply himself (he was 3 and was in a stage
    where everything had to be done by him!).  We also dressed
    him in long sleeves and long pants and made him wear a hat
    if he were outside (he had them in June) - this to elminate
    exposed skin just begging to be scratched and also something
    about the sun potentially causing more scars (maybe a wives'
    tale).  
    
    Jason had pox in his throat so bad that his breathing was
    affected.   To reduce the swelling, we used Benadryl.  I 
    remember being warned to not use both a topical antihistimine
    and the Benadryl for fear of over-medicating.
    
    My understanding is that you should NOT use hydrocortizone on
    open wounds (i.e. blisters that had not scabbed over yet).
    
    Jason was uncomfortable on days 2-3 and went back to his 
    babysitters on day 5 since the other child there had already
    had them (that's where he got them).  His babysitter is
    unlicensed and therefore did not have to follow any rules
    that the State may set.
    
    cj

    
    	Last summer, in showing Marc (the city boy) what poison ivy was, I
    contracted the worst case of poison ivy that I had ever had. The
    itching was unbearable and I had literally tried everything.
    
    	I finally came across a product (I can't remember the name but I'll
    look it up this evening) that literally *stopped* the itching and pain
    (just a sheet of blisters) I have no idea if it would work on Chicken
    Pox but I have always kept it in mind to try once they hit our house.
    
        Also, a paste of baking soda and water "painted" onto the pox, does
    wonders for itching as well.
    
    				Wendy

    
    	Drat, I just remembered, the product is IVAREST (or IVYREST), in
    any event, worth it's weight in gold IMHO, and with a house in the
    woods, we shall never be without a tube in our home.
    
    				Wendy

Wendy, it might be of interest to noters if you could report what the key 
ingredients are.

Clay

We also bought a 100% cotten pajama (versus her typical winter "sleepers").
The cotton seemed to feel better against the pox.

From the day we saw the first pox, it was 10 days before Lauren could
be in a crowd.

    Our biggest help was in keeping them COOL!!  They had them in the
    spring/summer, so it was a bit more of a challenge, but anything that
    we could do to keep them cool helped a)relieve the itching, and
    b)prevent MORE spots from coming out.  Jason was in diapers at the
    time, so his "diaper area" was covered the worst.  They got baths
    several times a day, with LOTS of baking soda in the tub (probably
    about 1/4 to 1/3 pound).  That seemed to help the most.  On hot days,
    I'd dump baking soda in their kiddie pool, and let them splash around
    in there as well.  We used some calamine lotion, but that seemed fairly
    ineffective, and also used benadryl liquid, which helped a lot.
    
    Don't remember how long they were out of school/daycare .... it's
    supposed to be until the spots stop oozing, from what I remember.
    
    Being "naked" or just undies/diaper, with blanket(s) seemed to be more
    comfortable to them, than being in clothes.  Neither one scratched much
    at all, though they do each have 1 mark from a spot they couldn't
    resist.
    
    For smaller children, some people will tape sox/gloves over their
    children at night because the kids don't even REALIZE they're
    scratching.
    
    

    I used a spray product called "no more burns".  We tried "no more
    itchies", but it didn't work as well.  The burn version has a mild
    numbing ingredient, which really helped when he was out of his mind with
    itching.  David had a horrible case, and still 1 year later he has
    scars.  It also helped to dress him in one of my super-soft cotton
    t-shirts.  Any place that rubbed (waistband, cuff line, etc) developed
    horrible blisters that threatened to become infected, so we left him in
    as few clothes as possible.  We also used the Aveeno bath, which helped
    relax him and soothe the skin enough to help him get to sleep.  Also
    Benadryl elixir, 1/2 dosage around the clock, and tylenol.  He also had
    a fever for the first few days, so he was quite miserable for a good
    week or so.  
    Sarah  

    Well,
    
    I am on the second go round in a month.  Carrie got them for the second
    time three weeks ago.  I had her cleared up with minimal scarring and
    the Atlehi broke out Sunday morning.  The poor baby is miserable, but I
    think we are coming around the corner.  We used oatmeal baths and
    calamine lotion on Carrie, and the baby has had a few more baths then
    normal as well.  I have been covering Atlehi with diaper ointment as
    that seems to have worked better than anything else for her.  We have
    had to keep her covered up as she itches and will scratch given the
    opportunity.  
    
    One side effect for her is that she is now "bear walking" as she has
    the pox on her knees.  This is a mixed blessing as I am afraid she will
    start walking even earlier than she is threatening to, and I am one of
    those parents who prefers not to have kids walking until they are at
    least a year old.  However, it is another developmental milestone and
    she is very cute moving around like this.  
    
    Now for the bad news.  My DO told me that often when children get the
    pox younger than a year, that they will most likely get them again when
    they are older.  My hope is that, unlike Carrie at 2, Atlehi has had
    the case of chicken pox from hell, and that maybe it will stick in her
    immune system.  Carrie at 2 just had a couple here and there and wasn't
    really sick at all, unlike 3 weeks ago with this latest batch.
    
    meg

    
    Set mode = PANIC! (hopefully too soon!)
    
    As indicated previously both my older kids have had pox.  Jason,
    however had a very mild case.  Actually, Chris had a mild case as well,
    but was worse than Jason.  In Jason's daycare/school they've had *LOTS*
    of chicken pox going around, and they seem to be the ones to notice
    that the kids are even sick - they see the pox before mom/dad, and so
    send the kids home.  Several of Jason's friends are out because they
    have them now.  Yesterday Jason had a headache all day and felt lousy. 
    Today he was sent home with a fever of 102 and still feeling cruddy.
    He's with his dad right now, so I don't know anymore details than that.
    
    If he has ONE spot ....! (-:  I never noticed any symptoms in them
    before they broke out before (or maybe just missed it) - have your
    children had fevers or complained of headaches?  My concern is that if
    Jason is getting them again, then it's likely that Chris will get them
    again also.  AND now there's Jonathan (6 mos old) who's never been
    exposed.  Groan.
    
    The Dr's office said that those symptoms are common 24-48 hours before
    they break out.  They also said that if Jonathan gets them, his
    immunity depends on how badly he gets them, and doesn't have to do with
    age at all (different than what I'd heard in the past).  
    
    What were the most common symptoms you noticed before your kids broke
    out??  And, IF Jason does have them, what are your opinions on whether I
    should keep them separate or toss 'em together?  
    
    Thanks!
    Patty

    Patty,
    
    Not to panic you, but Carrie got sick to her stomach and then ran a
    slight fever before she broke out this time.  She felt fine in the
    morning after being sick in class, and went to school the next day only
    to be sent home two hours later becasue she spotted up.  Now I looked
    her over that morning and I swear there wasn't a bump on her.  
    
    atlehi was grumpy, but the poor kid has been cutting teeth, and my two
    older kids ran fevers with each tooth so I didn't check her temp.  
    
    Good luck, and I hope for your sake that this is just a transient bug.
    
    Meg, who itches all over from watching spotty kids. 

My nephew, Brian, has them too.  We're not sure whether he had the fever
before the spots showed up, because he complained of the spots first.  He 
had at least one on his head on Saturday which he asked about because he 
thought it was a cut.  His mom didn't recognize it as a spot at that point, 
but by Sunday morning he had a 102 degree fever and by Monday morning he
was polka-dotted from head to toe.  Neil had a slight fever on Tuesday night, 
but so far no spots have shown up.  We're waiting and watching...

                                              Tracy

    When Russell caught them, he had a what seemed to be mild cold symtoms
    - Running nose, sleepy, cranky etc.  He didn't have a fever until he
    broke out in force - and then it was pretty low grade (99.x). He also
    had 1 spot for a least one day (maybe more) before we knew what he had
    - it was very tiny and never really got big until after he exploded
    with them.  Russell has very fair, sensitive skin, and a small pimple
    in a sweaty spot was not all that uncommon, so we really thought he
    just had the latest bug going around the daycare.  The daycare teachers
    kept a close watch on all the kids that were cranky and had runny noses
    if they hadn't had CP yet - just about all the kids that had these
    symtoms came down with the dreaded spots by the end of the week.
    
    marianne

    Evan broke out with them this past Saturday night.  He woke up from his
    afternoon nap crying.  He climbed up on my bed and went back to sleep. 
    When he woke up later he had a fever of 101.  I gave him tylenol. In a
    couple of hours his fever was normal.  Later that night, he was laying
    on the sofa and I was rubbing his back.  That's when I found the first
    one.  When I took his shirt off, I found several more.  
    
    He went to bed like normal.  When he woke up Sunday morning, his fever
    was back and he had a runny nose.  So we started with the Benedryl and
    the lotion.  He also loves the Aveeno baths. (We just had our bathroom
    redone and it great fun to play in the new whirlpool tub)
    
    Well, some of the blisters are scabbing over so hopefully he will be
    better by the weekend.
    
    I am also worried.  My oldest (now 7) had them when he was 4 and Evan
    was 6 months.  He had a very mild case.  He only had like 25 blisters
    in total.  Poor Evan has 25 on his chest alone.  I hope the oldest
    doesn't get them again.  
    
    Well, good luck to everyone!!!!
    
    
    Lillian
    

    Well, turned out the panic was for nothing ..... Jason had 2 really bad
    ear infections - neither of which hurt him in the least, but which did
    cause his fever.  Coupled with a cold, he was feeling pretty yucky, but
    is over the worst of it now!
    
    PHEW!

    Patty,
    
    Lucky you!  Nt for the ear infections, but for the fact that cp is not
    on your plate, yet.
    
    Meg

    
    
    Can someone tell me what Shingles looks like?
    
    	I ve seen chicken pox but, people tell me it's very different.
    
    Thanks

In my case, the distinguishing feature was that the shingles were in a very 
sharply defined area, most visible on my nose.  The right side of my nose was 
very red and painful, the left side completely normal.  The line between the 
affected area and the non-affected area couldn't have been straighter or more 
sharply defined if it had been drawn with a straight edge.  There was a 
similar line, not quite so sharply defined, on my cheek.  The entire affected 
area was, I'd guess not more than a square, about three inches on a side.  
Also, it was more painful than itchy.  There were none of the characteristic 
watery "pimples" you see with chicken pox.

In all of the cases I'm familiar with, the affected area was relatively small 
and sharply definded, as compared with chicken pox.

I was told that the reason was the the shingles attacks the nervous system, 
so the affected area is the area "serviced" by the branch of the nervous 
system.  Because the left side of my nose was "serviced" by a non-affected 
branch, there was no indication of shingles there.

Clay

    
    I'm trying to decide if my 22 mo old has Chicken Pox, another outbreak
    of the molloscum virus, or a rash from being outside (quite sensitive
    skin.
    
    He's been VERY grouchy the last few days, Tylenol provide relief, TG! 
    He has bumps, usually in groups, primarily on his legs, but also on his
    back.  Only a few have gone to a blister, and so far, it's a tiny
    blister...
    
    ........?????
    
    
    Any sure fire clues, other than a trip to the pedi?
    
    Jamd

    
    From my experiences, I'd say he doesn't have chicken pox.  They tend to
    show up more in "hot spots", and aren't usually "grouped" like that -
    more spread out.  If he's still in diapers, his butt/diaper area would
    probably have more than anyplace else.  Under the arms, behind the
    knees and at the nape of the neck and head seemed to be more densely
    affected in my kids.
    
    Could it be some kind of poison ivy or something like that?  If he's
    grumpy you might want to take him anyway - especially if they can offer
    relief!  A lot of times an antihistamine can help - Benedryl is good
    for older kids - not sure about that young.
    
    Maybe an allergy?  Have you changed laundry det/dryer
    sheets/food/medicine/perfume/soap/shampoo ?? (-:  
    
    Good Luck!
    

    Hmmmm.. behind the knees, eh?  That's where I found the new patch this
    morning!
    
    Not to worry; I have an "expert" (she has 4 children) coming over this
    evening to check him out!)
    
    :-)
    Jamd

    
    My daycare provider informed me this morning that one of the little
    girls that was at daycare last week was exposed to the chicken pox.
    I haven't seen any spots on either of the boys (Josh is 10 mos and
    Nick is 26 mos) yet.  I'm concerned because I will be away next week
    and my husband will be taking care of the kids alone (which he
    is not use ;-)) and I'm afraid one or both boys will break out
    while I'm gone.  I've prepared for the worst and went to the
    drugstore and bought some Benadryl and Aveeda lotion just in case.
    Is there anything else that may help?
    I've noticed that both boys have been noticeably cranking within
    the past 2 days.  I thought it was the heat but now I'm not sure.
    
    
    Thanks for your help,
    Chris 

    Aveeno bath will help too.  Derek had the pox when he ws 18  months
    old, and he loved getting a bath every day in the stuff - really helped
    to control the itching.
    
    Good luck!
    Barb

re: .133

Don't know if it's occurred to you, and it may be too late anyway, but have 
you and your husband had chicken pox?

Chicken pox are much more serious in adults than they are in children.  They 
are not something you would want to break out with if you are travelling or 
if you are caring for two children by yourself.

Clay

    
    The way it was explained to me is that you can't "carry" chicken pox. 
    Therefore, being in contact with someone who was in contact with
    someone, shouldn't be a problem.  It would only be a problem if your
    boys were in contact with someone who actually HAD chicken pox.  Check
    with your Dr.  I think the incubation period is 2 weeks also, so you
    may just squeak by ...
    
    

Lauren caught chicken pox on the 21st day after exposure.
We thought she was out of the woods and then DOT..DOT...,
you know the rest.

Chicken pox has been making the rounds at my daycare for the last 4 months.
The notices that the director posted indicated that the incubation period
is 7-21 days after exposure.  It also said that to be "exposed" to chicken pox,
you need to be around the person that breaks out 24-48 hours before the first
spots appear.

I wish that both my boys would get them and get it over with...except that
I've not had them.  My doctor said that there is a medication called zorvorax
(sp ?) that they give to adults to help lessen the symptoms.  He recommended
that I call with 24-48 hours of breaking out for it to be most effective.


- Terry

    
    Fortuntately, both my husband and I have had the chicken pox.
    So far so good, no dots as of yet..keeping my fingers crossed.
    
    Chris

    Well my daughter came down with chicken pox over the weekend.   Boy, is
    she miserable.  She was complaining about a headache on saturday and
    was kind of whiny (you know nothing suited her).   Sunday afternoon, my
    husband was giving her lots of hugs and mentioned to me that she felt
    hot and had noticed several spots on her back.   In about an hour her
    back was covered with spots and some were noticed on her tummy as well.
    She had a 101.4 temp.  She hadn't started complaining of itching yet.
    Monday she was feeling terrible all day, lethargic, feverish and more
    spots were showing up on her tummy and back.   Tuesday morning she woke
    up hysterically crying because her throat and ear was hurting her. 
    Took her to the doctor tuesday afternoon. (Note:  Had to take her in
    the back door since they didn't want her in the lobby with the other
    kids).  Well, guess what!  On top of the chicken pox she had an ear
    infection.  Her throat was really red, she had some chicken pox in her
    throat  and the doctor cultured her to see if was strep.  I am assuming
    that it wasn't since I didn't hear from them today.   They gave her a
    liquid medication called "ATARAX"(sp?) which was supposed to help with
    the itching as well as make her drowsy so that she could get some
    sleep.  She was also given Amoxicillen for the ear infection. She
    hadn't slept since Sunday except for a few hours.   Mom and Dad were as
    miserable as she was.  She has been very unco-operative about taking
    Aveeno baths, but the "ATARAX" must be helping her enough so she
    doesn't need them.    The doctor mentioned that ear-infections and
    strep throat sometimes go hand-in-hand with chicken pox, so if your
    child is complaining of their throat hurting, its probably a good idea
    to get thme to a doctor.
    
    Sarah
    

>    The doctor mentioned that ear-infections and
>    strep throat sometimes go hand-in-hand with chicken pox, so if your
>    child is complaining of their throat hurting, its probably a good idea
>    to get thme to a doctor.

Interesting point.  Because they don't want kids with chicken pox infecting 
other kids, doctors are often eager to treat chicken pox over the phone.  
That worked out fine for us; our kids had fairly mild cases, with no 
complications, but that might not always be true.

Clay

    Your right about the doctors not wanting them to come in to be treated,
    which is why when we took her, I had to run into the lobby, tell them
    she was here, and then they had her go into the back door directly into
    the room.   She never got near any other children at all.  My husband
    and I hated that she was so ill with all this.   This is her 2nd day of
    amoxicillen and she is starting to perk up now.  I don't think it was
    the chicken pox that was making her feel so ill at all, but the strep
    throat (the culture turned out to be positive) and the ear infection.
    
    Sarah

    
    So that I can finally throw away this box, I had earlier referred to a
    product called IVAREST that literally stopped the itching when I had
    poison ivy.
    
    Someone wanted to know what the active ingredients were. They are as
    follows:
    
    Calamine, Benzocaine, Diphenhydramine Hydrochloride, Benzethonium
    Chloride and a host of other things.
    
    In English, that amounts to:
    
    	"Professional Strength Antihistamine, Soothing Anesthetic"
    
    	It gets applied 3 times daily and when I had horrible poison ivy it
    was the only thing that really helped.
    
    				Wendy

    I recently "heard" there is a vaccine against chicken pox.  I was
    thinking of calling my pedi to ask, but wondered if anyone out there
    has any info.
    
    This would be great because I've never has chicken pox so I've dreaded
    the thought of my son getting them. (he's 7.5 months old now).
    
    thanks,
    Tracey

Tracey,

I too have never had it.  I took my daughter in for her 10 month
checkup on Tuesday and asked about it.

The vaccine is scheduled to ship later this month.  While he didn't
sound like he would be giving it to her unless she was a teenager and
hadn't gotten it yet, he said that I was a great candidate.  There is
a test to see if you have had it already and didn't know.  I am going to
take the test and if I haven't had it yet, I'm getting the vaccine.

-- Nisha

What I've heard...

Chicken pox is a common, typically uneventful childhood disease whcih almost
always provides immunity for the rest of one's life.   In adults, however, the
disease is more painful, uncomfortable, and more prone to complications. 

The vaccine is new.  So if we give the shots to kids, and they don't get CP,
but the immunity is not as good as virus-triggered immunity and wears off at,
say, 45 years old, and then they all get CP and the ugly complications, then
it's worse for them. 

So it's better to just let the kids get CP.   However, let's say your an adult 
and never had them, or you're about to start trying to get pregnant and never 
had them, then the benefits of the vaccine outweighs any risks.  

--------------------

As an aside, if you are an adult and never had them, you should ask for the 
serum antibody test for them.   It's likely you either had such a mild case 
that no one noticed, or that you developed immunity without having the 
symptoms.     It's helpful to know for when your child gets them, and esp if 
you plan on having another child, as CP during pregnancy can be a serious 
issue.     I know a few people who never "had" them, but are immune.  

   FWIW:
   
   Our 3 older kids all had chicken pox a couple of years ago.  It turned
   out that I never had it, and I got it from my kids.  When I called the
   Dr. for myself, they gave me a prescription for some sort of
   anti-viral drug (no, I'm afraid I don't remember what it was).  While
   it didn't stop the illness, it did slow it down to the point where my
   case was no worse than my kids'.  It was a little uncomfortable, but
   other than that, not a big deal, really.
   
   So.. if you're not a good candidate for this vaccine, or you can't get
   it yet, or you have concerns, there is another alternative if you
   should happen to catch it as an adult.
   
   - Tom

    
    to add to more to .146 - yes its much better to get it as a child and
    from what I have heard they don't recommend every child being
    vaccinated against them because like mentioned the vaccine does where
    off and getting CP as an adult is much worse.  
    
    However, if your child has certain illness (and I forget all of them, I
    believe Lukemia was one) the CP vaccine is recommended because getting 
    CP on top of these other illnesses can cause major problems and even death.
    
    

    Our pedis (Westford Perdiatrics) are going to start giving it to
    all kids over age 1 year.  The vaccine is suppose to arrive in the 
    office anytime now.  The National Academy of Pediatrics (or whatever
    the group is called that reccomends shots for kids) has recently added
    it to their shot list.
    
    I asked one of the pedis what he thought about the shot a few weeks ago
    before it was added to the shot list.  He said his opinion didn't matter.
    If it wasn't added to the shot list then the insurance companies
    wouldn't pay for it.  If it was added then everyone would get it.  He
    also said that until recently he might not have been in favor of it
    but he saw several nasty cases in children this past winter - enough
    to make him reconsider.
    
    The vaccine is new to the US but it has been used in Japan for about
    10?? years.
    
    Carol

    Our pediatrician also mentioned that the chicken pox vaccine is
    available in Japan but also said that it is only 70% effective.  He and
    I both thought the disease doesn't seem serious enough to use a not
    very effective vaccine for it.
    
    Beryl

    Effective January 1996 the state of Massachusetts will pay for CP
    vaccines for 12 and 18 month olds.  FYI

    
    I talked to my pedi last week because both of my sons (3.5 & 1) were
    exposed.  It's null and void now for my 3.5 year old.  He got them the
    end of last week.  The jury's still out for my younger son, but my
    pedi's opinion was that as others have stated unless you have a serious
    illness, especially if you are taking steriods, of if you are older, 
    especially if you are female and planning on getting pregnant, 
    he said he would skip the vacine if you could,because:
    
    		1) CP is not a high risk life threatening illness
    		2) not sure if the vacine will "wear off" at a later age
    		   and/or get CP anyway and/or require a booster, 
    		   then another etc.
    
    ... but he did say that more than likely by the time my sons are school
    age, (MASS) if they had not gotten CP or had the vaccine, they probably 
    would be required to have it as a required immunizations like MMR and the
    like. 
    
     

    re: .147
    the anti-viral drug you're referring to is Acyclovir, also known as
    Zovirax.  This is a drug that's used by Herpes sufferers, doesn't cure
    the problem, just makes it easier to live with.
    
    Sandy

We use the Fallon HMO sytem. Our pedi at the Fitchburg (MA) office related that
Fallon would not start carrying the vacine until more info is available. It
seems that getting ChickenPox as a child makes a person a possible candidate for
shingles in middle age. It is unclear at this point if the Chicken Pox vaccine
has any effect on the susceptability for shingles. 
Moot for us, as the little man had Chicken Pox a month ago. I didn't know about
the shingles bit, though. Anyone else heard of this?

-Jeff

    Jeff,
    
    It's interesting you should bring up the shingles thing.  Just three
    weeks ago we visited my parents for the weekend.  My mother called on
    Monday night to report that my father had come down with a mild case of
    shingles on Sunday night, which was diagnosed on Monday.  Fortunately
    for my 50 year old dad, he only had two small patches on his back.  His
    doctor asked him if he had been exposed over the weekend to anyone who
    had not had chicken pox.  If so, they could catch it from him.
    
    I thought this was odd, so I called my pediatrician who told me
    shingles is a form of chicken pox that shows up in adults who have
    already had chicken pox.  I had to treat the situation just as if my
    nine month old daughter had been exposed to someone with chicken pox.  
    
    So we've been on a chicken pox watch, but so far nothing.  If there are
    none by tomorrow, we are safe.  This time anyway.
    
    Kristen
    

    
    
    Well, I've read all 155 replies and still do not have my answer.  
    
    
    Early last week, Lauren got about 10 red spots on her rear end,
    near the outer edge of her diaper.  I didn't think much of them,
    just assuming heat rash or something.  On friday, my daycare
    provider asked me if I'd noticed so I began treating them over
    the weekend with Desiten to see if they would go away.  Today, the
    spots, which blistered BTW, are starting to scab over and heal.
    I was talking with my daycare provider and she thinks that they
    look like Chicken Pox, however they were not itchy, so she
    thinks perhaps they are not.
    
    Except for the itching, it appears that Lauren got a very mild 
    case of chicken pox.  She hasn't been exposed to my knowledge but
    we were on vacation in mid July and in alot of public places 
    (like Storyland...).
    
    So, can you have chicken pox without the itch?  Does this sound
    like chicken pox?  How will I ever be sure?
    
    Karen

    This does sound like a mild case of Chicken pox.  My neighbors son only
    got a few spots with no itching.
    
    Your daughter may not have gotten it enough to develop an immunity. 
    So, she may get it again when she's older.
    
    Did the spots look red around the edges with a little blister in the
    middle?  This is what Chicken pox looked like on my kids.  Was she a
    little fussy during this time?  
    
    Linda

    Just a note fyi --
    
    I had a mild case of chicken pox when I was very young --- about three
    years later I got them AGAIN...
    
    The second case was fairly mild too!
    
    
    

    
    She wasn't fussy at all.  And yes, I think the spots looked like
    that but I really didn't take a close look until she had them
    for several days.  When I started the Desiten this weekend, they
    were raw.  She didn't like me wiping off old Desiten to apply
    new because it hurt her.
    
    I put in a call to the nurse at our HMO and she says that it doesn't
    sound like Chicken Pox since it wasn't itchy.  She told me that it
    could be a very wierd case of chicken pox but the only way to know
    at this time would be to see if any of Laurens friends get it.
    If Lauren doesn't get them by the time she is a teen ager, they
    would test to see if she is immune.
    
    Our nurse did say that some other viruses could appear like this.
    
    The American Academy of Pediatrics now recommends the Chicken Pox,
    to be recieved by children 12 to 18 months of age.  I think that
    recommendation just came last week.  My HMO is not recommending it
    however since they are not sure when the vaccine might wear off.

>>    I put in a call to the nurse at our HMO and she says that it doesn't
>>    sound like Chicken Pox since it wasn't itchy.

My son Gregor was about 3 years old when he had chicken pox.  There was no
doubt - he had a very classic case, and it was going through all the kids at
the place he went for day care.  But he didn't find it itchy at all.  Neither
of my kids seemed to notice itchiness until they were around 4-5 years old
(didn't notice mosquito bites, etc.).  So I'm a bit doubtful about the
nurse's response.  As an aside, I've found that at the office we take our
kids to, what I get from the murses is typically "common sense Mom" advice,
and the doctors frequently have a nearly opposite response if I discuss the
same situation or set of symptoms with them!  So if I have a situation where
"common sense Mom" wisdom doesn't seem sufficient to me, I try to get access
to a doctor for information/advice.  (Of course, then I sometimes get "from the
book" responses with no connection to the reality of little kids, like the
doc who assured me that *all* little kids like the super-sweet taste of
those yucky pick antibiotics - not *my* son, who spit it all right out at me!)

							cheryl

    I believe that they can test to see if there are chicken pox antibodies
    present if you really would like to know for sure.   Blood would need
    to be taken though, so I don't know if you feel that it was important
    enough that you'd have a blood test done.
    
    

    It doesn't sound like chicken pox. Typically chicken pox appears on a
    limb or the trunk to start. Spots blister and "weep" within a day
    before the next batch of spots appear. [My son had a mild case and his
    second and subsequent batches were minimal.]  After weeping, the spots
    have a definitive crust, unlike other rashes in my view.
    
    

    My son had 3 spots when he was just over 3 -- not until a week later,
    after t hey'd all gone, did i even suspect that these were chicken pox.  
    Maybe it was because there were so few, and i was a first-time mom,
    that i didn't recognize them as such -- he certainly didn't complain at
    all.
    
    The following year he came down with a full-blown case, complete with all 
    the itches.  My then 6-month old got them too but they didn't seem to
    bother her at all. What they told me at the dr's office was that the 
    younger they are, the less it bothers them.  Maybe it's because they 
    don't have the ability to scratch, or complain, or what, but she was just 
    her normal happy self, very polka-dotted, but no scratching or complaining 
    at all.
    
    They did tell me, tho, that since she was so young, that she could get
    them again, but it might be such a mild case that we'd never recognize
    it as such.
    
    sandy

    My reaction too is that these spots on the bottom are in the wrong
    place for chickenpox ...  Normally they come out on the torso first
    and spread up ...
    
    These chickenpox like spots on the rump could be simply small boils,
    which will behave like the -pox ... but won;t be itchy.
    
    Stuart

    Many replies = Many experiences...
    
    When my oldest son got chicken pox the FIRST place they showed up was
    behind his ear.  I don't think he got many at all on his torso.  He
    also didn't really itch very much but did run a high fever for a couple
    of days.  My other two got them in succession after the first and NONE
    of them started on the torso.
    
    The diaper area, being kind of moist, would be an ideal area for them
    to start.  My MIL LOVES to tell how bad her sons pox were in the diaper
    area.
    
    

    When you say the outer edge of her diaper, do you mean on the legs?
    When David had them, his WORST outbreak was along his belt-line. He was
    out of diapers by then, but he couldn't wear pants for a few days so he
    spent the time in long t-shirts.  Any elastic would rub and irritate
    the spots, and two got infected.  He did have spots elsewhere, however.
    Sarah

    
    re: -1
    
    Where exactly... her outer butt cheek!  Almost her leg.  You know,
    where the butt meets the leg.  It was actually hard to see when 
    changing her which is probably why I didn't worry about it... i
    didn't notice most diaper changes.
    
    Lauren is in contact with lots of kids, not just the ones at her
    daycare but my day care provider has play time with her neighbor
    who does daycare and with a friend with 3 little girls.  Plus,
    we visited friends of mine when the outbreak appeared and there
    were 2 little children there.  If none of them gets chicken pox, 
    I'll know for sure whether Lauren had it or not.
    
    I'll report in here at the end of August with the results!

    karen,
    
    If the other kids don't catch them, don't be too sure it wasn't chicken
    pox.  Kids seem to vary in immune system response, until they are at a
    point where they do come down with them.  
    
    Carrie's first outbreak (@ a little less than 2 years) sent me into the
    Dr's as I thought she had empetigo or something.  she broke out on her
    head and face with a very mild case.  5 years later she caught them
    again with a strain that nailed several people who had already had
    chicken pox.  Atlehi had a nasty case, and the Dr's "reassurance" was
    that since she was under 12 months, chances are we will get to go
    through this again :-(.  However, two other kids who were in close
    contact with Carrie and her friends before they came down with it, and
    who had never had the pox, didn't catch them.  Funny how that happens.
    
    

    
    Someone just sent me mail reminding me that I promised an update.
    
    None of the 8 children that Lauren was around caught chicken pox
    so chances are, she didn't have it.
    
    If she reaches her teenage years and never gets chicken pox, I'll
    have her tested to see if she is immune.  Unless, of course, she
    gets that vaccine before then.
    
    I heard (don't know where) that the state of Massachusetts
    may require the chicken pox vaccine before a child enters the
    school system.  Its not a law yet, but it could be within the
    next few years!
    
    Karen