On Sept. 1, the Calvert County Health Department sent a letter to parents of children attending Dowell Elementary School because of a reported outbreak of the predominantly children’s disease, Chickenpox.

The letter, written by David I. Rogers, M.D., MPH, Calvert County’s health officer stated that parents and guardians should pay careful attention to the symptoms and make sure their children are properly vaccinated against the disease.

Chickenpox, varicella, is a highly contagious disease, which causes an acute illness with a rash that results in children missing days of school while they have the active infection. However, the disease is contagious up to five days prior to the first symptoms appearing in an infected person.

Most children are now vaccinated with at least one dose of varicella vaccine, but because one dose of the vaccine is only 80 to 85 percent effective, it is not unusual to see breakthrough cases. Health officials now recommend that children receive two doses of the vaccine to avoid serious infection.

This very contagious infection is spread from person to person by direct contact or through the air from an infected person’s coughing or sneezing. It causes a blister like rash, itching, tiredness, and fever lasting an average of four  to six days.

Most children recover from having the chickenpox without any problems. However, the disease can be devastating to adults causing serious long-term after effects. Chickenpox in vaccinated persons is generally mild, with a shorter duration of illness and fewer than 50 lesions. The rash may be atypical with red bumps and few or no blisters.

In the letter to parents, Calvert County Health Department strongly encouraged parents to have their children receive their varicella vaccination if the child has not been vaccinated or has never had chickenpox. The vaccination is a two-2-dose series administered about three months apart.

For those experiencing symptoms of the disease, the following actions are recommended by Calvert’s Health Department:

• Contact regular health care provider to discuss the symptoms and to see if anyone in the home needs to be vaccinated.
• For school aged children, parents should contact their child’s school nurse to report the disease.
  
• Those with the disease should avoid contact with others who have not had chickenpox or who are not vaccinated. They should not attend school, daycare, work, parties and/or gatherings until the blisters become crusted, about four to six days after the rash appears, or no new lesions appear within a 24-hour period. Keep all chickenpox spots and blisters and other wounds clean and watch for possible signs of infection; including increasing redness, swelling, drainage and pain at the wound site.
  
• If anyone in the household has a weakened immune system or is pregnant and has never had chickenpox or the vaccine, they should seek the advice of their primary medical care provider immediately.
  

Calvert County Health Department is currently working with Dowell Elementary School officials to implement prevention strategies. Part of that strategy is for parents to check with their physicians to ensure their children have had both recommended doses of the vaccine.