Is it possible to walk a child with chickenpox
Chicken pox is called one of the most common childhood infections. It is caused by a virus from the group of herpes viruses, susceptibility to which in childhood reaches 90-100%.
This infection is transmitted by airborne droplets. And since such a virus is very volatile and is able to overcome tens of meters, being carried with particles of saliva from sick child to other people, the question of walking with chickenpox in a child is very relevant for parents.
In addition, the minimum duration of the illness is 8-10 days, and it is rather difficult to spend this time for children without walking. For this reason, each mother of the child with chickenpox is interested in whether it is possible to walk with chickenpox, and if not, then on what day you can go for a walk so as not to pose a danger to others and not to harm the sick child herself.
Why not walk
Chickenpox is most often diagnosed between the ages of 2 and 10, and most children tolerate it easily. And because many people consider such an infection to be completely harmless, and some mothers even go to the sick child to visit, so that their babies get sick as early as possible and avoid complications.
For this reason, many pediatricians believe that quarantine for chickenpox in children's institutions is not needed. However, there are situations where the causative agent of chickenpox can be dangerous. It is because of such situations that children with chickenpox in the period of infectiousness should not go for a walk on the street, to visit, to the shop and other places.
- Firstly, not all children tolerate chicken pox easily, without temperature and only with a few bubbles. In some babies, the course of the disease is more severe, the body temperature is greatly increased, and the rash is abundant. Chickenpox is especially dangerous for children with chronic pathologies and immunodeficiency. In addition, none of the children are immune from the occurrence of complications of such a disease, for example, encephalitis or pneumonia. Although very rare, but in children such complications also occur.
- Secondly, the pathogen of chickenpox from a sick baby can get into the respiratory tract of an adult who has not had this infection in the past. And if children have chickenpox quite easily and completely, then for adults this infectious disease is very dangerous, and scars and scars can remain on the skin.
- Third, a sick child can transmit the virus to a pregnant woman without immunity to chickenpox, and infection with chickenpox during gestation of the baby can cause severe pathology in the fetus (if the woman fell ill in the first trimester) or cause severe congenital chickenpox in the baby immediately after birth.
To avoid such situations, children with chickenpox are isolated, which means a ban on walking. It is especially important to stay at home in the acute period of the disease, when the baby's body temperature is elevated, and more and more new rashes appear on the skin.
After how many days you can go for a walk
As soon as the child's general condition is normal, and after the appearance of the last vesicles on the skin, five days will pass, the baby is no longer considered contagious and can walk for a walk.
In this case, mothers should be aware of such nuances:
- The immunity of children suffering from chicken pox, as a rule, decreases, so crowded places for some time after the illness should be avoided.
- It is important not to allow hypothermia, but also not to wrap the child excessively, so as not to interfere with recovery. Baby clothes should be natural and comfortable.
- The baby’s skin is more sensitive to sunlight for some time after the illness, so it is not recommended to stay in direct sunlight.
- The first time after recovery, avoid active outdoor games. A good idea would be educational activities on the street, for example, you can collect fallen leaves with your child.
- If the child has suffered chickenpox in the summer, then bathe in open reservoirs until the skin is completely healed, it is not necessary to prevent infection of the wounds.
When you can still go for a walk with chickenpox
In some cases, it is not necessary to wait for the child to stop being contagious if he wants to walk outside. For example, if the body temperature returned to normal, and the weather outside was good, the child could walk, provided that the baby lived in a private house and went out into a large courtyard, without contacting other people at least several tens of meters away. In other cases, frequent airings and “walks” on the balcony will help provide the toddler with fresh air.
