Vaccination against chickenpox has been available in Germany since 2004 and can be given to infants as young as nine months. As a rule, chickenpox vaccination is given together with vaccination against measles, mumps, and rubella. The Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) recommends that children be vaccinated for the first time at 11-14 months of age. The second chickenpox vaccination is then given at 15-23 months. Vaccination is also possible at any time later and is especially recommended for children and adolescents between the ages of nine and 17.
No guaranteed protection despite vaccination
The vaccine is attenuated varicella zoster virus, against which the body develops antibodies after vaccination. About three to five weeks after vaccination, protection against chickenpox begins. In individual cases, however, it is possible for chickenpox to break out despite vaccination. In such cases, however, the disease usually takes a milder course.
In general, chickenpox vaccination should not be carried out if acute illnesses with fever are present or the immune system is weakened for other reasons. It is also better not to vaccinate during pregnancy. However, if you were accidentally vaccinated against chickenpox during pregnancy, you should not panic: So far, there are no known cases of damage to the unborn child as a result of the vaccination.
Chickenpox: Treatment
In chickenpox, treatment is usually given not for the viruses themselves, but only for the symptoms they cause. The itching can be relieved by applying moist, cool compresses. Compresses soaked in chamomile tea also counteract the itching. The application of lotions and creams containing zinc can also be helpful. Ointments, on the other hand, should rather not be used, as the airtight seal creates an ideal breeding ground for bacteria. Particularly severe itching can be alleviated by taking antihistamines.
In the case of fever, medications with the active ingredients paracetamol or ibuprofen should be used. Medicines containing acetylsalicylic acid should not be used under any circumstances in children because of the side effects. Patients who have a weak immune system may also be given a virostatic agent such as aciclovir, which inhibits viral replication.
Chickenpox and shingles
Those who have gone through chickenpox once are usually immune to the disease. But the viruses continue to linger in the body even after the last patches of skin have healed: they retract into the spinal or cranial nerve ganglia and can trigger shingles at a later time, usually in adulthood.
Around 20 percent of people who carry the varicella zoster virus in their bodies develop shingles later in life. This is because stress or a weakened immune system can reactivate the viruses. Anyone who has shingles can infect other people with chickenpox, but not with shingles. Therefore, ill persons should avoid contact with pregnant women in particular.
