Treatment
Normally, an infection with chickenpox does not require treatment. Since more pronounced courses are more likely to occur in adults than in children, an assessment should be made by a doctor. Therapy against the actual chickenpox virus is advisable in adults (over 16 years of age) with pronounced symptoms, as severe courses are more likely to occur in adults than in children.
Depending on how severe the symptoms are, an antiviral agent (usually Aciclovir) is administered as a tablet or directly into the vein. A therapy with antibiotics is usually not appropriate, since it does not treat viruses, but only bacteria. They are only used when scratched chickenpox blisters become inflamed (superinfection).
A typical example of antibiotics for bacterial superinfection in scratched chickenpox is cefuroxime, which must be taken as tablets for 5-10 days. If the itching is severe, so-called antihistamines can be used as drops or dragees. The best known example of this is Fenistil (active ingredient: Dimetinden).
Adults should take 1-2mg maximum three times a day (1mg usually corresponds to 20 drops or 1 dragée). Detailed information can be obtained from the doctor treating you. To reduce fever, aspirin should be avoided at all costs, as its administration in combination with chickenpox infection can lead to serious side effects (Reye’s syndrome: acute encephalopathy and liver dysfunction), which occur less frequently in adults than in children. For more detailed information, please contact your treating physician.
Avoid scars
Scars normally only occur when the blisters are scratched open. An increased scarring occurs when bacteria settle in the scratched vesicles and cause an inflammation. Scars can be avoided by not scratching the vesicles. To reduce the itching, appropriate medication can be taken.
Possible complications
In pregnant women, chickenpox can cause symptoms in the unborn child in about 1-2% of cases, including skin lesions and various malformations, and in 30% of cases it can be fatal for the child (fetal varicella syndrome). If a newborn child is infected (from 5 days before and 2 days after birth), the disease is fatal in 30% of cases. If the virus spreads to the lungs, pneumonia can occur.
Bacteria can also cause pneumonia if the immune system is weakened by windbock. Pneumonia caused by chickenpox viruses occurs particularly in adults. Furthermore, diseases of the nervous system (encephalitis, meningitis, coma), liver, heart, joints, kidneys and blood formation can occur. Overall, complications are significantly more common in adults than in children.
