Chickenpox (Varicella): Complications

The following are the most important diseases or complications that can be caused by varicella (chickenpox), especially in immunocompromised patients:

Respiratory system (J00-J99)

  • Pneumonia (pneumonia); not uncommonly severe in pregnant women; lethality of untreated varicella pneumonia in pregnancy: -44% (increasing with gestational age).

Eyes and eye appendages (H00-H59).

  • Corneal lesions (corneal changes).

Certain conditions originating in the perinatal period (P00-P96).

  • Fetal varicella syndrome (FVS)-condition characterized by neurologic disease, skin changes, eye disease, and bone abnormalities; occurs when the mother becomes ill between the fifth and 24th weeks of pregnancy (see “Chickenpox (varicella) in pregnancy” below)
  • Severe courses of varicella infection in newborns whose mother contracted varicella shortly before birth (within five days before birth).

Blood, blood-forming organs – immune system (D50-D90).

Cardiovascular system (I00-I99)

  • Apoplexy (stroke)
  • Myocarditis (inflammation of the heart muscle)
  • Varicella zoster virus vasculopathy (VZV vasculopathy) – parainfectious arteriopathies (arterial disease that arises in direct connection with the infectious disease, but is not directly caused by its causative agent); can lead to acute ischemic infarctionConclusion: in the case of jaein juvenile (child) apoplexy (stroke) should be asked about chickenpox / herpes zoster as part of the medical history.

Infectious and parasitic diseases (A00-B99).

  • Bacterial superinfection of the skin symptoms
  • Herpes zoster (shingles; after infection, varicella zoster virus (VZV) remains latent in the neural pathways and can lead to herpes zoster after endogenous reactivation)
  • Sepsis (blood poisoning), e.g. infection with streptococcus type A due toscratching (0.2-0.3 ‰)

Liver, gallbladder and bile ducts – Pancreas (pancreas) (K70-K77; K80-K87).

  • Hepatitis (inflammation of the liver)

Skin and subcutaneous tissue (L00-L99)

  • Scarring

Musculoskeletal system and connective tissue (M00-M99)

  • Arthritis (inflammation of the joints)

Ears – mastoid process (H60-H95)

  • Otitis media (inflammation of the middle ear)

Psyche – nervous system (F00-F99; G00-G99)

  • Anti-NMDA receptor IgG-positive encephalitis – chronic autoimmune disease that may occur secondary to varicella zoster encephalitis.
  • Epilepsy (seizures).
  • Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS; synonyms: Idiopathic polyradiculoneuritis, Landry-Guillain-Barré-Strohl syndrome); two courses: acute inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy or chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (peripheral nervous system disease); idiopathic polyneuritis (diseases of multiple nerves) of spinal nerve roots and peripheral nerves with ascending paralysis and pain; usually occurs after infections.
  • Meningitis (meningitis).
  • Myelitis transversa – diffuse inflammation of the spinal cord.
  • Reye syndrome – acute encephalopathy (pathological change of the brain) with concomitant fatty liver hepatitis (fatty liver inflammation) after a passed viral infection in young children; occurs on average one week after the resolution of the previous illness.
  • Varicella zoster encephalitis (brain inflammation).
  • Cerebellar ataxia – gait unsteadiness due to a disturbance in cerebellar function.

Pregnancy, childbirth, and puerperium (O00-O99).

  • Abortion (miscarriage); occurs when the mother contracts varicella in the first and second trimesters (third trimesters of pregnancy)

Genitourinary system (kidneys, urinary tract – sex organs) (N00-N99).

  • Nephritis (inflammation of the kidneys)