Many children with chickenpox in nurseries and schools

Many cases of chickenpox infection are currently being reported to the city health department in Offenbach am Main. Most children from the age of two should be double vaccinated and therefore immune. "The disease is accompanied by an itchy rash and blisters and cannot be treated with antibiotics. The disease can be particularly dangerous for pregnant women - it is important that children do not infect their mothers," explains Dr. Bernhard Bornhofen, head of the public health department.

"The infection is transmitted quickly from child to child via droplets in the air or contact with objects such as door handles. Viruses are also present in the blisters of the rash and can be contagious on contact." It can take up to 16 days between infection and the outbreak of the disease.

Infections can only be prevented through containment. As soon as a case of chickenpox occurs in a facility, all children with contact without sufficient immunity are banned from entering the facility and must be cared for at home for 16 days. Sufficient immunity is achieved with the double vaccination. All children/family doctors vaccinate against chickenpox. There has been a vaccination recommendation for children from the age of two since 2004. Immunization through infection instead of vaccination must be proven by a certificate from the paediatrician before entering the facility.

If the chickenpox virus becomes active again in adults and especially older patients, it can cause painful shingles. There is also a vaccination program for people over 60 to prevent shingles.

Multilingual information on chickenpox can be found at www.infektionsschutz.de (opens in a new tab) by searching with the term "chickenpox".