Why Vaccinate Against Chickenpox?: English

One history of medicine book credits Giovanni Filippo (1510–1580) of Palermo with the
first description of varicella (chickenpox). Subsequently in the 1600s,

an English physician named Richard Morton described what he thought a mild form of
smallpox as "chicken pox." Later, in 1767, a physician named William Heberden, also
from England, was the first physician to clearly demonstrate that chickenpox was
different from smallpox. However, it is believed the name chickenpox was commonly
used in earlier centuries before doctors identified the disease.
There are many explanations offered for the origin of the name "chickenpox:"
 Samuel Johnson suggested that the disease was "no very great danger," thus
a "chicken" version of the pox;
 the specks that appear looked as though the skin was pecked by chickens;
 the disease was named after chick peas, from a supposed similarity in size of
the seed to the lesions;
 the term reflects a corruption of the Old English word giccin, which meant
"itching."
As "pox" also means curse, in medieval times some believed it was a plague brought on
to curse children by the use of black magic.
From ancient times, neem has been used by people in India to alleviate the external
symptoms of itching and to minimize scarring. Neem baths (neem leaves and a dash
of turmeric powder in water) are commonly given for the duration.
During the medieval era, oatmeal was discovered to soothe the sores, and oatmeal
baths are today still commonly given to relieve itching.
Why vaccinate against chickenpox?
 The risk of hospitalization and death from chickenpox is increased in adults.

 Chickenpox may cause complications such as pneumonia or, rarely, an
inflammation of the brain (encephalitis), both of which can be serious.
 About 90% of unvaccinated household contacts of an infected person will catch
chickenpox.
Which adults need chickenpox vaccine?
Did you know…
adults are 25 times more likely to die from chickenpox than children?
 All adults who never received the chickenpox vaccine and never had the
chickenpox.
 If you’re not sure whether you had chickenpox or the vaccine, you should get
vaccinated.
 Adults who are at higher risk of exposure should especially consider vaccination.
They include healthcare workers, college students, teachers, and daycare workers.
Why is chickenpox vaccine important?
 The vaccine reduces the chance of getting chickenpox.

 Vaccinated individuals who get chickenpox are likely to experience a milder case
than those who are not vaccinated.
Disease and vaccine facts
 FACT: Adults are more likely than children to die or have serious complications if
they get chickenpox.
 FACT: Chickenpox can be prevented with a vaccine. Sometimes vaccinated
persons come down with chickenpox but the illness is usually mild with fewer
than 50 lesions.
 FACT: The same virus that causes chickenpox (varicella zoster) can remain in the
body and reawaken years or decades later to cause shingles.
 FACT: Chickenpox is contagious from one to two days before the rash appears
until all the blisters have formed scabs or lesions fade away (if no blisters
develop).
 FACT: It usually takes 10 to 21 days for chickenpox symptoms to appear after
exposure to an infected person.
 FACT: If a pregnant woman gets chickenpox during the first 20 weeks of
pregnancy, her baby has a one in a 100 risk of having serious birth defects such
as shortening and scarring of limbs, cataracts, small head size, abnormal
development of the brain, and mental retardation.
Complications
Complications from chickenpox can occur, but they are not common in healthy people
who get the disease.
People who may get a serious case of chickenpox and may be at high risk for
complications include:
 Infants
 Adolescents
 Adults
 Pregnant women
 People with weakened immune systems because of illness or medications, for
example,
o People with HIV/AIDS or cancer
o Patients who have had transplants, and
o People on chemotherapy, immunosuppressive medications, or long-term
use of steroids.
Serious complications from chickenpox include:
 Bacterial infections of the skin and soft tissues in children, including Group A
streptococcal infections
 Infection of the lungs (pneumonia)
 Infection or inflammation of the brain (encephalitis, cerebellar ataxia)
 Bleeding problems (hemorrhagic complications)
 Bloodstream infections (sepsis)
 Dehydration
Some people with serious complications from chickenpox can become so sick that they
need to be hospitalized. Chickenpox can also cause death.
Deaths are very rare now due to the vaccine program. However, some deaths from
chickenpox continue to occur in healthy, unvaccinated children and adults. In the past,
many of the healthy adults who died from chickenpox contracted the disease from their
unvaccinated children.

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One history of medicine book credits Giovanni Filippo (1510–1580) of Palermo with the

first description of varicella (chickenpox). Subsequently in the 1600s,

 The risk of hospitalization and death from chickenpox is increased in adults.

 The vaccine reduces the chance of getting chickenpox.

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