Chickenpox, also called varicella, presents as a red, itchy rash developing into small blisters that break open and crust over, accompanied by fever, headache, fatigue, cough and abdominal pain. This highly contagious disease, caused by a virus, most often occurs in children, although adults may be infected. A successful vaccine exists to fight off chickenpox infections. Because chickenpox is normally a mild disease, complications rarely occur, but the possibility remains.
Pregnancy Complications
Pregnancy complications can result as a side effect of chickenpox. Babycenter.com says that contracting the chickenpox during the first or second trimester of pregnancy puts the pregnant woman at risk of miscarriage and puts the fetus at a small risk of developing congenital varicella syndrome, or CVS. This condition causes birth defects like skin scarring, malformed limbs, an atypically small head and vision problems. CVS-infected fetuses may see poor growth and may have seizures and physical and mental developmental disabilities after birth.
Shingles Infection
The incidence of chickenpox as a child means the virus remains in the nerve cells after the attack has healed. As an adult, this latent infection can activate, causing a condition called shingles, which presents as painful rash of blisters that can last from one to 14 days. Medline Plus reports the early signs of shingles as a mild to severe burning or shooting pain, accompanied by tingling or itching, often on one side of the face or body. Shingles may affect vision or hearing, and the pain can last anywhere from weeks to years after the blisters heal. No cure for shingles exists, but according to MayoClinic.com, a shingles vaccine does. Physicians recommend it for adults over the age of 60 who have had chickenpox.
Encephalitis
MayoClinic.com lists encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain, as a possible and rare side effect of chickenpox. Symptoms of encephalitis include fever, headache, poor appetite, lethargy and a general feeling of sickness. Severe cases present with high fever and various central nervous symptom maladies like seizures and problems with speech and hearing. This condition usually occurs as the pox clear or within the next two weeks, according to the Merck Manual. Recovery is likely, although death may occur.
