ADVICE RATING |
 4.99 (Highly recommend) from 24 votes (943 Visits) |
SLAP CHEEK
what is it?
slap cheek is a strain of the parvovirus, its often reffered to as fifths disease.
what does it look like
slap cheek looks like what the name suggests, that both cheeks of an infected person look as though
they have been slapped, sometimes it can also look blotchy and red. if it spreads to other body parts it often looks lacy and red in appearance or can be decribed as spidery.
who gets slap cheek?and how
most often kids get slap cheek and sometimes babies, most ppl have had it as kids and may not even know it its highly contagious and can be caught from being in the same room as someone who is affected. so when one child is infected it will usually pass thru an entire class and all the families that the children are in.
SYMPTOMS
kids can show no symptoms other than a rash on their cheeks or often the same ones as a cold such as fever, runny nose, headache and slight joint pain. the rash can spread to other parts of the body in some case.
should i be worried if my child has slap cheek?
slap cheek is normally mild and passes the same as a cold does, treating the symptoms same as you would a cold or flu is normally recomended but all the same if the fever is high or the symptoms worsen seek medical advice straight away. the infected person needs to stay quarantined till it passes as the virus is highly contagious and can cause problems with certain conditions which ive outlined below.
who is most at risk
the research ive looked at says that 50% of pregnant women are immune to slap cheek as they have had it in the past, but slap cheek is very dangerous to pregnant women not yet immune if you are pregnant and have contact with slap cheek go to the doctors and get checked for immunity as soon as possible as there is a risk of misscarrige and birth defects in women affected during pregnancy.
ppl with blood abnormalities such as sickle cell anemia can be badly affected as it can worsen the condition, ppl with these conditions young or old will need to seek medical advice straight away and may need blood transfusions to combat the anemia until the infection is controlled.
people with low immune systems or immuno deficient will also need medical care to combat anemia caused by slap cheek. this includes ppl with cancer especially leuakimia.
how long will it last
the incubation is about 1 to 2 weeks and most research says that its not contagious once the rash appears but some say that its still mildly infectious until the rash is gone, id suggest that you keep your child at least away from those most at risk until the rash is gone completly to be on the safe side.
(November 2007) (
