How not to catch chicken pox from your child

For parents and siblings not to get chicken pox from the child, they should get the chicken pox vaccine as soon as possible. If they have not yet taken it, it serves to prevent the development of the disease or smooth out its symptoms, which in adults are more intense and severe.

The vaccine is offered by SUS and can be taken from 1 year of age. Learn more about the chickenpox vaccine.

In addition to the vaccine, the doctor or pediatrician may recommend the use of an antiviral medicine so that, if parents or siblings catch chicken pox, symptoms such as fever or the appearance of blisters are milder.

If parents or siblings have already received the chicken pox vaccine, the risk of developing the disease is minimal, but if it does, the symptoms are mild, with only about 30 blisters appearing, and recovery usually occurs within a week.

Other precautions not to catch chicken pox

Other precautions for parents or siblings not to catch chicken pox include:

Avoid contact with the child with chicken pox. For this, the child can be taken care of by the nanny or another family member who has already had chicken pox, or else the siblings leave the house and are in the care of another family member; Wear gloves to treat chicken pox blisters on the child, as chicken pox is caught through direct contact with the wound fluid; Do not touch, scratch or burst the child's chickenpox wounds; Wear a mask, because chicken pox can also be caught by inhaling droplets of saliva, coughing or sneezing; Keep your hands clean, washing them with antiseptic soap or alcohol several times a day; Do not go to malls, buses or other closed spaces.

This care must be maintained until all the wounds of chicken pox are dry, which is when the disease is no longer contagious. During this time, the child must stay at home and not go to school to avoid transmission of the disease.

In some cases, parents prefer siblings to stay at home and get chicken pox too, because chicken pox when it appears as an adult is more serious.

How not to catch chicken pox from your child while pregnant

For the pregnant woman not to get chickenpox from her child, she should avoid contact with the child, staying at someone else's house or leaving the child in the care of a family member until the chickenpox wounds dry completely, as the vaccine cannot be administered during pregnancy.

In addition, the obstetrician may also recommend the use of an antiviral medicine to reduce the risk of the pregnant woman catching chicken pox or decrease the intensity of symptoms, if she catches chicken pox.

It is very important that the pregnant woman does not get chicken pox, because the baby may be born with low weight or with malformations in the body. See the risks of catching chicken pox in pregnancy at: Chicken pox in pregnancy.