Chickenpox is considered a childhood illness. However, it is quite possible to get sick as an adult. Herpes virus type 3, which is very contagious, can provoke it. Of particular danger is chickenpox for pregnant women. It is very important to know exactly what complications may occur, as well as how to properly treat and prevent the occurrence of this disease.
Disease feature
Chicken pox develops as a result of infection with the herpes virus, which also provokes the appearance of shingles. This is a very contagious disease and has the following features:
- not completely cured;
- spread by airborne droplets;
- the virus is sensitive to the environment;
- infection requires direct contact;
- has a long incubation period.
Once in the body, the herpes simplex virus type 3 remains in it forever, localized in the nerve cells of the spinal cord. With negative factors, one of which is a decrease in immunity, it is activated in the form of shingles. However, the body produces antibodies to the virus, which minimizes the likelihood of reinfection.
The virus spreads by airborne droplets. Getting on the mucous membrane of the nasopharynx along with streams of air, pathogens very quickly find themselves in the blood and lymph.
The virus is sensitive to low and high temperatures, as well as direct sunlight. Even under normal conditions, its viability is no more than 10 minutes. You can get sick only from an infected person a few days before the first rashes appear in him, and also within a week after detecting residual rashes. The disease has a long incubation period during which its symptoms do not occur.
Is it possible to contact sick people
Whether a pregnant woman can get chickenpox is of interest to so many women who did not suffer this disease in childhood. Chicken pox is a highly contagious disease, and the risk of contracting an infection by close contact is almost 100%. The patient is contagious, starting from the last days of the incubation period and all the time until the rash remains on the skin. Only a week after falling off the crusts, the patient becomes harmless to others.
That is why contact with an infected chickenpox and shingles is strictly contraindicated for pregnant women.
Can a pregnant woman get chickenpox if she already has had this disease? Yes. This is quite possible, despite the fact that there are antibodies in the body. They do not guarantee complete protection against infection, as they may lose their ability to neutralize the pathogen.
Symptoms of the disease
Answering the question whether it is possible for pregnant women to get chickenpox, it must be said that this disease is very dangerous, and it is important to carry out preventive measures in order to prevent infection. First of all, women who did not suffer from chickenpox in childhood risk being infected. The protective forces of the body during the bearing of the baby are reduced, so there is no easy course of the disease.
Chickenpox occurs in moderate or severe form. Symptoms are much more pronounced than in other adults. By the end of the incubation period, which lasts 2-3 weeks, the first signs appear. They are expressed in the form of deterioration of well-being, which is observed with severe intoxication of the body, fever, headaches, weakness and loss of appetite appear.
After this, a rather specific symptom appears - rashes. Initially, the rash looks like pink and reddish spots of different sizes, which in a few hours turn into vesicles and blisters filled with transparent contents. On average, the formation of new rashes occurs over 2 weeks.
When the rash dries a little, it becomes covered with crusts. They themselves must disappear after 2 weeks. Most importantly, they should not be ripped off so as not to cause infection.
What is the danger of chickenpox for a woman and a fetus
The consequences of chickenpox in a pregnant woman can be quite dangerous, which is why it is important to take appropriate measures to minimize the risk of infection. The future mother has a rather difficult illness, and complications may occur, which include:
- pathology of the organs of vision;
- encephalitis;
- myocarditis;
- joint abnormalities;
- kidney damage.
The negative and dangerous consequences of the disease threaten the child. The degree of risk for a woman and a baby largely depends on the duration of pregnancy.
In early pregnancy
Chickenpox for pregnant women and the fetus, as already mentioned, is very dangerous, and especially in the early stages of bearing a child, during the laying of organs and until the formation of the placenta. So, infection at a period of 6-12 weeks leads to pathologies of the development of the limbs in the child.
If the disease began to develop at a period of 12-20 weeks, then there is a high probability of damage to the eyes and brain of the baby. Damage to the chicken pox virus of the nerve endings provokes a violation in the formation of sphincters of the rectum and urethra.
Underdevelopment of the extremities is explained by the tendency of the virus to infect fast-growing tissues. Skin manifestations are the formation of zigzag scars. Often they cover underdeveloped limbs. Eye lesions are presented as cataracts. In addition, the brain may remain in an underdeveloped state. When conducting a biopsy, calcifications, areas of tissue necrosis and hemorrhage are determined in it.
Severe consequences of chickenpox, transferred in the first trimester, can be an indication for termination of pregnancy. In some cases, a miscarriage occurs. If a woman fell ill with chickenpox, being pregnant in the early stages, then she needs to be diagnosed in order to determine the prospects for further bearing the fetus. In some cases, children are born without pathologies, but with congenital chickenpox.
In the second trimester
Chickenpox for pregnant women in the 2nd trimester also carries dangerous consequences. A disease can cause brain damage. A baby may be born outwardly normal, but over time signs of mental retardation will be noticeable. Sometimes after childbirth, pathological neurological symptoms are present, and there may also be convulsions.
During this period, the risk of infection of the child is low, since the formed placenta protects against the penetration of viruses. A newborn can have pathologies such as:
- lung diseases
- violation of the function of the excretory system;
- visual impairment;
- skin scars or lack of epithelium in some parts of the body;
- deviations of physical development.
It is also likely brain damage with signs of mental retardation and neurological symptoms. However, death is rare.
In 3 trimester
If a pregnant woman has contracted chickenpox in the 3rd trimester, then the disease is the least dangerous to the fetus. Its internal organs are already well formed, the placenta functions normally and protects the child from the penetration of the virus. The danger is the symptoms of the disease that appeared in the mother 5 days before birth or 2 days after them.
During the neonatal period, the baby does not have its own protective antibodies, and the mother becomes a source of infection. The child is very difficult to tolerate such an infection, and a fatal outcome is observed in about 20%.
Chicken pox causes very serious complications, in particular, such as inflammation of the respiratory system and liver, encephalitis. If a woman is given immunoglobulin, then the course of chickenpox will be easier, and the newborn will receive the required protection against complications.
Treatment features
In the case when a pregnant woman gets chickenpox, you need to immediately visit a doctor who will prescribe the diagnosis and the required treatment. For treatment, antiviral agents are required, as well as antiseptic solutions for the treatment of rashes. Potent drugs are prescribed only in emergency situations in the presence of complications. Often the treatment of chickenpox is aimed at eliminating the symptoms and discomfort. That is why medicines are required:
- to relieve itching;
- eliminate inflammation;
- increase immunity;
- normalization of temperature.
The pregnant woman should take the drug “Acyclovir”, which suppresses the action of viruses. It is imperative to treat the skin with antiseptics, for example, potassium permanganate or brilliant green. Also effective means are "Calamine" and "Fukortsin."
To normalize body temperature and reduce pain, it is allowed to take "Paracetamol". Immediately after the birth of a baby, a woman needs an injection of immunoglobulin. It is necessary to strictly follow all the recommendations of the attending physician. Any of the drugs used can have a negative effect on the fetus.
Daily hygiene is required, but without the use of irritating cosmetics, and it is also forbidden to rub the skin with a washcloth. Antihistamines are prescribed to eliminate itching. Among the safest and most effective are considered "Suprastin" and "Fenistil."
Can I get vaccinated during pregnancy?
Can pregnant women get chickenpox or not - largely depends on the period of pregnancy. In order to prevent infection, it is necessary to timely resolve the issue of vaccination. The thing is that the period of vaccination can occur at a time when the woman is already pregnant. In this case, vaccination is strictly prohibited.
To avoid problems in the future, you need to take care of this in advance and consult a doctor. If in childhood a woman did not suffer from chickenpox, then she needs to be vaccinated and only after 3-4 months should she plan a pregnancy. After vaccination, you do not need to contact people who have not had smallpox, as a woman temporarily becomes the source of infection herself.
If she had chickenpox in childhood, then it is necessary to pass tests for the presence of antibodies to the causative agent of the virus in the blood. Do not interrupt pregnancy if conception occurred before the expiration of the allotted period after vaccination. However, you need to tell the gynecologist about this, since the consequences can be negative.
Pregnancy after chickenpox
The consequences of chickenpox in a pregnant woman can be very dangerous for the fetus. That is why appropriate measures must be taken to prevent infection. Those who have had the disease before pregnancy should not be afraid for their condition and consequences for the baby. A woman develops specific antibodies that protect her from the causative agent of the virus.
If the mother became infected after childbirth, then you need to protect the baby from infection, especially in the first months after birth, until the baby begins to develop its own immunity.
Prophylaxis
Chickenpox for pregnant women, if a woman was sick in early childhood, is not so scary. Despite the fact that in most cases the disease does not develop a second time, you still need to take appropriate preventive measures and not communicate with an infected person.
In order not to develop chickenpox, you must adhere to the following rules:
- limit contact with young children;
- do not communicate with people who have rashes on their bodies;
- if there are those in the family who have never had chickenpox, you need to take a course of vaccination.
A pregnant woman can become infected where there are large crowds, so she needs to avoid such places.