Chicken Pox Symptoms and Causes
Chickenpox is a highly contagious disease. It is characterized by
skin rashes accompanied by fever and malaise.
The disease is an acute type and occurs in both endemic and epidemic
forms. Chickenpox is common throughout the whole world.
Causes of Chicken Pox
Chickenpox mainly spreads through droplet infections and droplet
nuclei from the upper respiratory tract.
There are a few factors that determine the disease. They are;
- Agent factors- Chickenpox is caused by the varicella-zoster or
(V-Z) virus. It is also called as the Human (alpha) herpes virus 3.
Generally, chickenpox is caused by a primary infection. After
recovery from the primary infection, a latent infection follows and
the virus remains lodged in the sensory nerve ganglia for a long
time, even for decades. The latent infection does not show any
clinical manifestations. The virus may get reactivated when there is
low immunity or when any patient gets an immuno-suppressive therapy
or in old age and result in a painful vesicular reaction known as
Herpes zoster. A patient of Herpes zoster can also be a source of a
primary infection of chickenpox.
- Host factors- The disease is commonly found in children who are
less than ten years of age. The adults are also affected but the
disease becomes more severe in them. The chance of infecting with
chickenpox becomes the highest in case of less immunity. The infants
are protected in their first few months by the maternal antibodies.
However, the virus from the infected mother can infect the fetus and
the neonate by crossing the placental barrier.
- Environmental factors- chickenpox has a seasonal trend of
infection in some countries and the disease is mostly found to occur
from January to June. In the temperate climate the trend of seasonal
infections is less. Also an overcrowded area favors the spread of
infection.
Chicken Pox Symptoms
The incubation period of chickenpox varies
from 7 to 21 days. The constitutional symptoms may vary from a brief,
mild illness with a few lesions to severe fever and widespread rash. The
clinical route passes through two different stages.
- Pre-eruptive stage- Before the rash appears; there is sudden
onset of mild to moderate fever associated with shivering, malaise
and pain. This period is brief in children and in adults the period
may be severe and long, lasting for 2-3 days.
- Eruptive stage- eruption of rash in chickenpox is sometimes the
first sign in children and is seen on the first day of fever. The
rash appears first on the trunks and then spreads to other parts of
the body like face, legs, arms, mouth and throat. Palms and soles
are generally not affected. The rash is copious on the trunk and it
is less in other areas. The rash erupts very fast and is
superficial. It rapidly passes through the phases of macule, papule,
vesicle and scab. All the phases can be seen simultaneously at one
time in a single area. The vesicles are fluid filled and appear like
dew drops. They have an inflamed surrounding and can easily rupture.
The vesicles turn into crusts with or without passing through the
pustular phase. Scabs start to form 4 to 7 days after the rash
erupts. Fever runs moderate but may rise with each fresh eruption of
rash of chickenpox.
|
