Most people know about chickenpox, perhaps you have not experienced it yourself or perhaps you don't know how serious it is, but you have more than likely heard of it.

Chickenpox is a serious viral infection that most people (over 90%) get as a child. These days most children

are immunised against it, and adults can be too.

A lot of the time the virus is just mild, but it can be quite serious and even cause death - adults will generally get seriously ill if they get the virus. It usually lasts for 7-10 days, it starts with cold like symptoms, but sometimes the first sign can be a rash - this rash usually starts on the chest, and the majority of spots will be on the head and chest (also in the hair), although some people may get spots everywhere. These spots will be very red and itchy and turn into blisters which then form a crust.

The virus is extremely contagious from the day the virus is contracted until the spots become crusted, generally about 5 days from when spots first appear but it can be longer. The spots will also generally continue to appear, so there may be new spots coming up for days so you can be contagious for quite some time after the first spots appear.

The chickenpox virus is spread like a cold is spread - coughing and sneezing - but also if someone touches the liquid out of the blisters. Generally it will take around 14 days for spots to appear from the day you contract the virus, so you should contact anyone that you have been around within 10-20 days before the spots appear.

Anyone that contracts the chickenpox virus should be kept at home at least until ALL spots have crusted over - they should have no contact with anyone that is not needed.

There are some quite serious health problems that can arise from the Chickenpox virus, this needs to be remembered when dealing with it. Chickenpox is a fatal illness for people that have immunity problems (any disease that compromises your immune system - HIV/AIDS, severe asthma or cancer for example). Adults can possibly get pneumonia from it, and can possibly die from the virus. The spots can get infected quite easily from being scratched, so you need to keep the infected person/s in a clean situation. In children the virus can cause encephalitis (an infection in the brain), so it pays to be extra careful. It can also cause Shingles (uncommon under 12 years of age) - they can be extremely painful and recurring. If a pregnant woman gets the chickenpox virus it can affect her unborn baby and there is a small chance that it may cause scarring or birth defects - if it is contracted within 5 days before she gives birth there is a larger chance of the baby having a severe infection from which many babies will die. There are many other health complications that can arise from having the chickenpox virus so it pays to be extremely cautious and treat it as a severe illness.

There is no cure for the chickenpox virus. The best way to deal with it is to make sure they have plenty of fluids, bed rest and pain relief. Camomile lotion or Aloe Vera is great to help with the itch, you can also bathe them in an anti-itch solution such as Pinetarsol. An anti-histamine can help with the itching also. If there are blisters in the mouth then they should not have any food or drinks that contain acid or salt, but a mouthwash can help.

You must never give aspirin to anyone with the chickenpox as it can cause Reye's Syndrome - this syndrome causes severe damage to the liver and brain and can be fatal.