Chicken pox

As chicken pox is very infectious, sick children should be isolated if possible, i.e. they should be kept at home. Older, particularly debilitated persons, should keep their distance. It is recommended that patients stay in bed when they have a fever. Children for whom the disease progresses in a straightforward manner should normally be able to go back to pre-school or school a week after the onset of chicken pox.

As the disease normally progresses without any complications, only drugs that combat the symptoms (inflammation, weeping, itching, fever) and not the virus are usually prescribed. Synthetic tannin (e.g in Tannosynt® Lotio or Tannosynt® liquid. Frequently, a zinc oxide shake mixture free of active ingredients is recommended, or drugs with other active ingredients that alleviate itching, such as Polidocanol. With very intense itching, the taking of anti-histamines is prescribed. If there is a risk of a bacterial skin infection, antiseptics must be applied externally as well.

Only patients at risk are given internal therapies that are directed against the virus.

Prevention

Currently, the Permanent Commission on Vaccination (STIKO) at the Robert Koch Institute generally recommends a varicella vaccination for all children and teenagers. It has therefore been one of the standard vaccinations in childhood since August 2004 in Germany.

A vaccination is also recommended e.g for the following risk groups:

• Women who want children and do not have any immune protection (of their own). Blood tests can reveal whether immune protection exists. If the immune system has already had contact with the virus previously, evidence of specific messenger substances directed against the virus (so-called anti-bodies) can be found.
• Patients for whom a therapy is planned that weakens the immune system and who do not have any immune protection of their own.
• Susceptible patients with severe neurodermatitis ('susceptible persons' means: no pre-history of chicken pox, no vaccination and with serological testing no evidence of specific anti-bodies).
• People in the health sector if they have no immune protection.