Chicken Pox???????!
Question: My 15 month old son has recently had chicken pox. His spots are scabbed over now and he's much betta. However I also have a 3 year old daughter who hasn't had them. What are the chances of her gettin it? and how long will it take for symptoms to show if she has caught it from him? (Iheard u contract the virus 10-14 days before spots appear?)
Answers: My 15 month old son has recently had chicken pox. His spots are scabbed over now and he's much betta. However I also have a 3 year old daughter who hasn't had them. What are the chances of her gettin it? and how long will it take for symptoms to show if she has caught it from him? (Iheard u contract the virus 10-14 days before spots appear?)
Chicken pox is caused by the herpes zoster virus (don't worry, as I'm sure you know, it is completely different from the types of herpes that cause genital and oral (fever blisters) lesions). It is considered one of the most readily communicable (contagious) diseases, especially in the early stages of eruption. Those who have not already had chickenpox have a 80-90% risk of infection after household exposure to the virus. The incubation period is anywhere from 2-3 weeks (typically 14-16 days), but can be longer for various reasons that I won't go into (because its rare).
Just FYI, here is how it is possible to spread this virus:
Person-to-person by:
direct contact
droplet or airborne spread of vesicle fluid
secretions of the respiratory tract or of vesicle fluid
indirectly through:
articles freshly soiled by discharges from vesicles and mucous membranes of infected people.
If after three weeks, you daughter still hasn't come down with chicken pox, you may consider having her vaccinated (there's now a vaccine out for it) so that she won't have to go through the rig-a-marole of getting the virus and itching herself crazy.
i would say keep her away from your son till u know that he has got ova the chicken pox.
My children got them one after the other. I think that is better then you already had practice, and you can get it over with. Two weeks is the typical time frame after exposure. With mine the first had very few scabs left when the other started breaking out.
Keep the oatmeal handy. I used a nylon sock filled with oats to help the children with the itching. They could get the satisfaction of itching but not the infection or scarring.