Chickenpox is a common childhood illness. MayoClinic.com points out that chickenpox used to be a rite of passage for most children, but the use of the vaccine has reduced the frequency of the illness. The virus, varicella, infects children under the age of 15 most often, but older children and adults can get it as well. The illness spreads easily from one ill individual to another. There are several ways to attempt to prevent the chickenpox illness.
Vaccination
Vaccination is the most reliable and convenient method of preventing the chickenpox illness. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that children get the first shot at 12 to 15 months of age with a second shot between the fourth and sixth year of life. Children over 13 years of age who are getting the vaccine for the first time should received the second dose at least 28 days after the first. Blood tests can be conducted to determine an individual's immunity to the varicella virus.
Community Immunity
The CDC points out that 45 of the 50 U.S. states have required the vaccine for children entering public schools. This is to maximize the prevention of the illness. This phenomena is sometimes called community immunity or other similar terms. The idea is that an individual who can't receive the vaccine, such as those who have egg allergies or an immune deficiency, can gain acquired immunity from chickenpox. If the unvaccinated individual is surrounded by vaccinated individuals, his risk of developing the illness is still rather low. This type of prevention is also helpful in households where children are too young to receive the vaccine but the rest of the family can provide a barrier of immunity by getting the vaccine themselves, if they haven't already.
Quarantine
Individuals who develop the chickenpox illness should be quarantined from others. The CDC points out that nine out of 10 individuals who have received the vaccine will not contract the illness. This suggests that some individuals will still develop chickenpox. Most of the time the vaccinated individual will have a milder case of chickenpox than someone who has not had the vaccine. The individual should be quarantined for at least five days after the development of the chickenpox rash to prevent spreading the virus. Unfortunately, the individual is contagious prior to the rash developing, but signs of illness may not have existed.
Some caregivers arrange "pox parties" to expose an infected child to several uninfected and unimmunized children. The thought is that by contracting chickenpox in this manner the child will develop immunity. This method is not without consequences. Once a child contracts chickenpox, the virus remains dormant in her body. Later in adulthood the virus can be reactivated as shingles, or herpes zoster. This is a very painful illness that can have serious neurological side effects, such as persistent pain for many months or even years after the onset of shingles. While the child may not miss school later in life because she will be mostly immune to the varicella virus after contracting it once, she may suffer later in life. Shingles is not likely to occur in individuals who received the chickenpox vaccine.
Avoiding Germs
The National Institutes of Health points out that it is very hard to avoid chickenpox without receiving a vaccine. An ill individual can spread the virus before he even seems sick. Thorough hand-washing, keeping the hands out of the eyes or mouth are ways to prevent the contraction of chickenpox, but avoiding the virus is not the most reliable method of prevention.
