Blackpox, called modern smallpox in its modern interpretation, is a viral infection with a high degree of contagiousness that affects exclusively people. Symptoms of this disease are manifested by general intoxication of the body, accompanied by characteristic rashes on the skin and mucous membranes.
People who have had this infection experience partial or complete loss of vision and the presence of scars that form at the site of the ulcers. In the article, we will talk about types of smallpox, symptoms and treatment methods.
General information and types of disease
Smallpox only infects humans. The development of smallpox is preceded by the entry into the human body of two types of specific viruses:
- Variola major - death occurs in forty percent of cases;
- Variola minor - the mortality rate varies from one to three percent of cases.
There are two forms of the disease:
- typical - has three degrees of severity of varying intensity;
- atypical - has non-standard symptoms and four varieties.
Varieties of atypical type of smallpox in humans:
- rudimentary smallpox - a disease with an asymptomatic or mild course (rashes and no temperature, less commonly, mild manifestation);
- visceral smallpox - an infectious process that captures the internal organs (kidneys, liver, pulmonary system, pancreas and others) and affects predominantly premature babies;
- hemorrhagic smallpox - rashes contain blood particles, hematomas occur on the surface of the skin (a consequence of taking certain medications);
- gangrenous smallpox is a rare severe pathology with a large rash that forms deep ulcers, and is difficult to treat.
These types of chickenpox are quite rare. The complications that this disease causes are expressed in encephalitis and meningoencephalitis, sepsis, keratitis, pneumonia, iritis and panophthalmitis.
What is a rash
The course of the disease is accompanied by intoxication and characteristic rashes, manifested in several stages, replacing each other.
The following types of rash are characteristic of chickenpox:
- spots - their occurrence is caused by local capillary expansion from the action of the virus, are pink spots up to four millimeters in diameter;
- papules - occur after a few hours on the spots as a result of serous edema, look like slightly raised reddish formations resembling insect bite in appearance;
- vesicles - the formation of papules in place is caused by exfoliation of the epidermis - single-chamber vesicles with a transparent liquid are surrounded by a red “rim”, the contents become cloudy over time;
- pustules - occur in place of bursting bubbles, quickly become crusty;
- crusts - the skin heals, the crusts fall off within two to three weeks;
- scars - formed on the site of healed rashes.
At any stage of the disease, it is forbidden to rip off or comb the formation, this can lead to bacterial infection and the formation of long non-healing wounds. Also, when washing, do not use sponges or washcloths, for hygienic procedures it is enough to use a liquid detergent.
The causative agent of smallpox and the incubation period
Symptoms of smallpox become caused by infection with the virus of this disease from an already sick person or a hidden carrier of infection.
The causative agent of smallpox is a filtering virus antigenically related to group A red blood cells. Due to this, a sharp decrease in immunity, high susceptibility to the disease and mortality are explained.
A feature of this pathogen is resistance to environmental influences:
- For a long time (from one to many months), the culprit of the disease is freely stored in exfoliated crusts with smallpox on the surface of the skin of a sick person. If the virus is frozen or lyophilized (frozen and dried), its viability can persist for several years.
- Heating to 60 ° C causes the death of the virus within half an hour, and when the ambient temperature rises to 70-100 ° C, the death of the pathogen occurs in a maximum of 5 minutes.
- Under the action of ultraviolet radiation, the death of the virus occurs after six hours.
- Hydrochloric acid, alcohol, ether or acetone in half an hour will destroy the pathogen.
The incubation period of smallpox lasts an average of eight to fourteen days, sometimes it can last up to twenty-five days. A sick person is considered contagious a couple of days before the onset of the first symptoms and until the rash continues.
Contagious disease
Isolation of the pathogen occurs when the surface of the vesicles that appear on the skin again, as well as those that are already drying, breaks.
In addition, the virus is detected in the feces, urine and oral cavity of the patient.
From this it is clear that the transmission of the pathogen from the diseased to a healthy person occurs through close contact, by airborne droplets and from carriers of this virus (people or animals).
The virus is able to survive on clothes and bedding.
It should be said that the corpses of dead people from dangerous types of smallpox in humans also carry a high risk of infectivity.
The most dangerous for others is the course of the disease, which is asymptomatic in a latent form - it is difficult to diagnose and, therefore, isolate the patient in time.
Features of infection
People of any age get this disease, but children under four are the most vulnerable age category. Moreover, in childhood, the disease is easily tolerated, and the body acquires a stable immunity.
Adults suffer from severe intoxication, severe course of chickenpox and the possible consequences for them may be the most dangerous. The action of the virus affects the lymph nodes, which become painful and intense and increase in size several times. Meningitis, pneumonia, and visual impairment may also develop. The latter is due to the fact that ulcers affect the cornea of the eye.
Virus infection from a sick person occurs two to three days before the first signs of the disease appear - rashes. The first manifestations of the disease occur quickly and acutely, a person feels unwell a few days before the active phase of the virus begins.
The infection process occurs as follows:
- Inhaled contaminated air enters the respiratory tract and then moves to the lymph nodes, and then penetrates the blood, spreading throughout the body.
- Hematogenously infected epithelium, in which the virus then begins to multiply intensively, causing a person to rash on the mucous membranes and skin and reduce immunity (types of rashes of chickenpox depend on its type).
- As a result of a decrease in the protective functions of the body, the transition of vesicles (cavities with fluid inside) to pustules (cavities with pus) is activated.
- The germ layer in the epidermis dies, a destructive process develops, as a result of which scars form.
- In severe cases, infectious toxic shock and hemorrhagic syndrome (bleeding) may develop at this stage.
Primary symptoms of the disease
With a typical development and course of the disease, symptoms can be noticed after eight to fourteen (usually twelve) days from the moment of infection. Depending on the type of smallpox, symptoms may appear in a more or less pronounced form.
The primary symptoms of infection are:
- high temperature (from 37.5 ° C to 41 ° C);
- chills;
- acute lower back pain;
- pain in the limbs and sacral region;
- intense thirst;
- dizziness;
- vomiting
- headache.
The course of the disease in the first phase
After the onset of the first symptoms, on the second or fourth day of high fever in patients, an initial rash forms on the skin - initial formations that are not yet classified as typical smallpox.
The type of rash with chickenpox at the initial stage is hyperemic areas of the skin, similar to rose-like, measles-like or erythematous lesions.
It can also be localized in the armpits, chest, abdomen and on the inside of the thighs in the form of a hemorrhagic rash. In this case, the lesion has small multiple hemorrhages in the thickness of the skin and mucous membranes. Ecchymoses can develop - large spots of more than three millimeters in diameter with hemorrhages. A photo of a person with smallpox and how the symptoms and pox on the face look can be seen in this article.
The duration of the presence of a typical type of spotted rash disease is several hours, and hemorrhagic - a little more.
Middle phase of the disease
The middle phase of the manifestation of smallpox is characterized by the fact that by the fourth day in patients the temperature decreases markedly, symptoms and intoxication decrease, the general condition improves slightly.
At the same time, characteristic rashes begin to appear on the scalp and face (the type of rash with chickenpox depends on the type of disease), then spreading to the limbs and trunk, soles and palms.
In parallel with the previously arisen smallpox, they pass through successive stages of transformation according to the following scheme: spot - papule - vesicle - pustule - crust - scar.
Skin rashes with smallpox are characterized by a certain density, in the center of the papule there is a recess from which the infiltrate seeps. In addition to the previously indicated zones, rashes can be localized on the mucosa, affecting the nose, larynx and oropharynx, trachea and bronchi.
With the further spread of the virus, the infection passes to the conjunctiva of the eyes, urethra, rectum and female genital organs. Further, erosion is formed on the mucous membranes.
The final stage of the disease
The eighth to ninth day of the disease is characterized by suppuration of the vesicles. This process repeatedly worsens the patient's condition. In addition, the symptoms of toxic encephalopathy are added at this stage.
Outwardly, this is expressed in impaired consciousness, the occurrence of delirium and an excited state, convulsions appear in children.
The duration of the drying and peeling phases is one to two weeks. At the end of the process, characteristic scars appear on the scalp, as well as on the face at the end of the process.
A severe form of the disease can cause death. Severe and dangerous types of smallpox include pustular hemorrhagic and confluent forms of the disease, as well as smallpox purpura.
Diagnosis and treatment features
The primary task of diagnosing chickenpox is to take into account the clinical manifestations characteristic of the virus, which are then used for clinical studies, to which another smear from the oral cavity and a blood test are added. Then, on the basis of the analysis using electron microscopy, PCR and microprecipitation, the type and degree of the disease is diagnosed.
The initial result is obtained within a day, and then the virus is released and its identification occurs - it is important to quickly analyze the causes, signs and symptoms of smallpox.
Smallpox treatment is based on the following medications:
- antiviral, for example, "Metisazon" up to a week twice a day, 0.6 g;
- anti-inflammatory immunoglobulin intramuscularly at a dosage of three to six milliliters.
It is worth noting that the therapeutic effectiveness of these drugs is rather weak, but to date, no other drugs for etiotropic treatment have been created.
Antiseptic drugs and antibiotics (macrolides, semisynthetic penicillins, cephalosporins) are prescribed to alleviate the accompanying symptoms and prevent the attachment of a bacterial infection.
Crystalloid and colloidal solutions, plasmophoresis and ultrafiltration are used to detoxify the body. If itching occurs, the skin is treated with alcohol or vinegar.
As for the prognosis, it is determined based on the type of smallpox and the course of the disease, as well as on how the patient tolerates it.
Fatal outcome is predicted in the range of two to one hundred percent. A favorable end to the disease is most likely for vaccinated patients.
At the first suspicion of infection with the smallpox virus, you should immediately contact a specialist in the infectious diseases office.
Disease prevention
Since smallpox is a dangerous disease, not only treatment is important. Prevention of smallpox symptoms plays a key role in defeating this virus.
The main preventive measure is vaccination. It does not protect against the penetration of the virus, but significantly alleviates the symptoms of the course of the disease. Vaccination is carried out by variolation - using an early vaccine that is not safe.
Susceptibility to the pathogen is most relevant for those people who have not been vaccinated, since natural protection against chickenpox does not develop. The type of immunity received when receiving vaccination against chicken pox is called acquired.
Thanks to universal and compulsory vaccination in the middle of the last century, victory was achieved over the spread of this virus. The World Health Organization announced in one thousand nine hundred and eighty that smallpox was officially eradicated throughout the world.
Despite this, people with suspected infection with this virus must be isolated, because the disease cannot be completely ruled out - the strains of this infection are stored in two laboratories in the USA. The question of their destruction remains unresolved.