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Chickenpox usually lasts about 4 to 7 days. Its hallmark is a rash that turns into itchy, fluid-filled blisters that eventually scab over. It can be serious, even life-threatening, for some people. Anyone who has never had chickenpox or the chickenpox vaccine can catch it, and children typically miss 5 to 6 days of school or child care.
Symptoms
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1–2 days before the rash | Fever, tiredness, loss of appetite, headache |
| The rash | Often starts on the chest, back and face, then can spread over the whole body — including inside the mouth, the eyelids and the genital area. It usually takes about a week for all the blisters to scab |
Breakthrough chickenpox
Some vaccinated people still get chickenpox, but usually more mildly: fewer or no blisters (sometimes just red spots), little or no fever, and a shorter illness. Some, though, get sick much like unvaccinated people.
Serious complications
Complications aren't common in healthy people but can include:
- bacterial infections of the skin and soft tissue in children, including group A strep;
- pneumonia;
- infection or swelling of the brain (encephalitis, cerebellar ataxia);
- bleeding problems;
- bloodstream infection (sepsis);
- dehydration.
Some people become sick enough to need a hospital, and in the worst cases chickenpox can kill. Hospitalizations and deaths are rare today thanks to the U.S. chickenpox vaccination program, but some deaths still occur in healthy, unvaccinated children and adults — and in the past, many healthy adults who died caught it from their unvaccinated children.
Who is at higher risk
- infants;
- adolescents and adults;
- pregnant people;
- people with weakened immune systems from disease or medicine — for example, people with HIV/AIDS or cancer, transplant recipients, and people on chemotherapy, immune-suppressing drugs or long-term steroids.
Sources
Based on "Chickenpox Symptoms and Complications," Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; a work of the United States government in the public domain.
Licenza: CC0 1.0 (pubblico dominio) · Tratto da www.cdc.gov
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