Kisah Aku : Aku dan Chickenpox

Definition
Chickenpox is one of the classic childhood diseases, and one of the most contagious. The affected child or adult may develop hundreds of itchy, fluid-filled blisters that burst and form crusts. Chickenpox is caused by a virus. The virus that causes chickenpox is varicella-zoster, a member of the herpesvirus family. The same virus also causes herpes zoster (shingles) in adults.

Causes, incidence, and risk factors
In a typical scenario, a young child is covered in pox and out of school for a week. The first half of the week the child feels miserable from intense itching; the second half from boredom. Since the introduction of the chickenpox vaccine, classic chickenpox is much less common. Chickenpox is extremely contagious, and can be spread by direct contact, droplet transmission, and airborne transmission. Even those with mild illness after the vaccine may be contagious. When someone becomes infected, the pox usually appear 10 to 21 days later. People become contagious 1 to 2 days before breaking out with pox. They remain contagious while uncrusted blisters are present. Once you catch chickenpox, the virus usually remains in your body for your lifetime, kept in check by the immune system. About 1 in 10 adults will experience shingles when the virus re-emerges during a period of stress. Most cases of chickenpox occur in children younger than ten. The disease is usually mild, although serious complications sometimes occur. Adults and older children usually get sicker than younger children do. Children under one year of age whose mothers have had chickenpox are not very likely to catch it. If they do, they often have mild cases because they retain partial immunity from their mothers' blood. Children under one year of age whose mothers have not had chickenpox, or whose inborn immunity has already waned, can get severe chickenpox. The pox are worse in children who have other skin problems, such as eczema or a recent sunburn. Complications are more common in those who are immunocompromised from an illness or medicines like chemotherapy. Some of the worst cases of chickenpox have been seen in children who have taken steroids (for example, for asthma) during the incubation period, before they have any symptoms.

Symptoms
Most children with chickenpox act sick with vague symptoms, such as a fever, headache, tummy ache, or loss of appetite, for a day or two before breaking out in the classic pox rash. These symptoms last 2 to 4 days after breaking out.
The average child develops 250 to 500 small, itchy, fluid-filled blisters over red spots on the skin (“dew drops on a rose petal”). The blisters often appear first on the face, trunk, or scalp and spread from there. After a day or two, the blisters become cloudy and then scab. Meanwhile, new crops of blisters spring up in groups. The pox often appear in the mouth, in the vagina, and on the eyelids. Children with skin problems such as eczema may get more than 1,500 pox. Most pox will not leave scars unless they become contaminated with bacteria from scratching. Some children who have had the vaccine will still develop a mild case of chickenpox. They usually recover much quicker and only have a few pox. These often do not follow the classic descriptions of the disease.

Signs and tests
Chickenpox is usually diagnosed from the classic rash and the child's medical history. Blood tests, and tests of the pox themselves, can confirm the diagnosis if there is any question.

Source

firul says

"hmm...lama gak aku tak wat posting tentang diri sendiri..hm...and posting mengenai chickenpox di atas nih memang mengenai aku...alkisahnyer, memula aku ingat bintik2 pada badan aku just ruam biasa(aku tak pernah kena ruam, so taktau nak beza biasa ker tak), so aku pon biarlah sebab aku memang ader alergi sikit, kot2 sebab salah makan ker aper ker, maklumlah sebab 2-3 minggu terdekat lepas, aku pegi kenduri kawin kengkawan aku...tapi biler bintik2 tuh dah jadi gatal2, membesar and pedih biler aku mandi, mulalah aku suspek lain...and semalam doktor cakap aku memang kena chickenpox(aku memang tak budget sebab kan orang kater kalau kiter dah pernah kena, takkan kena lagi and aku dah pernah kena time kecik2 dulu...)...tapi sebab aku poyo nak datang keje gak arinih, aku cakap kat die nanti aku mai amik mc kemudian .. hari nih..huhuhu....bintik2 tuh dah penuh muka :((...habes aper lagi kantoi aaa...balik sat lagi aku kena pi balik klinik tuh and kemungkinan besar aku akan dapat mc selama paling kurang 10 hari and sepanjang 10 hari tuh jugaklah, aku rasa blog aku nih akan senyap sebab aku takder internet kat umah :))...oklah kengkawan2/awek2 yang selalu menjenguk ke blog aku nih, doakan aku tak banyak parut ek...thanks! wassalam :) "