How to take care of the unbearable itching of chickenpox?

Chickenpox has always been a concern for parents, because chickenpox can have a great impact on children's physical health. In dealing with chickenpox, we must first do a good job of nursing and prevent chickenpox by strengthening nursing methods. In the care of chickenpox, isolation and timely diagnosis are required. It can be treated with easily digestible food and sufficient water. The skin must also be kept clean to prevent continuous infection.

Chickenpox care

1. Once a child is diagnosed with chickenpox, he or she should be isolated at home until all the scabs have formed. Although the symptoms of chickenpox are mild and generally recover smoothly, it is highly contagious. Try to avoid contact between healthy children and children with chickenpox. Do not take antipyretics during a fever as this may cause complications and may easily lead to encephalitis. Children with fever should rest in bed and be given easily digestible food and plenty of water.

2. Take a bath with warm water to keep your skin clean and reduce the risk of infection. Eat a light diet and avoid foods that can easily cause inflammation, such as beef, fish, shrimp, crab, milk, eggs, etc. Be careful to prevent the sick child from scratching the rashes with his hands, especially those on the face, to avoid purulent infection and scars. It is important to prevent sick children from rubbing their eyes with their hands, which may cause eye infection and keratitis, resulting in scars and affected vision. Therefore, keep your child's nails short, keep their hands clean and wear gloves. The sick child's bedding should be dried frequently, and his clothes should be clean and loose to prevent overheating and itching caused by wearing tight clothes or covering himself with too thick quilts.

3. Some children with chickenpox may develop pneumonia and encephalitis. If the child is found to have a persistent high fever, cough and wheezing, or vomiting, headache, irritability or drowsiness, this is an extremely serious situation and you should seek medical treatment immediately. During the nursing process, it should be noted that some parents mistakenly believe that the more chickenpox the child has, the better, so they blindly give their children medicine for the rash. This causes dense chickenpox all over the child's body, making the condition worse. The child will feel unbearable itching, irritability, and even scratch with his hands. Mild cases will leave scars, and severe cases may cause bacteria to enter the blood circulation from the local infection lesions, grow and multiply in the blood, causing sepsis. Unless the pimple does not disappear within one or two days and instead shrinks inward, causing damage to internal organs, in this case, you should seek emergency medical attention without delay. In normal times, we should focus on exercise to enhance our disease resistance. During epidemics, we should avoid going to susceptible areas and contact with sources of infection.

Symptoms of Chickenpox

The rash first appears on the trunk and head, gradually extends to the face, and finally to the limbs. The rash is mostly distributed on the trunk, less frequently on the face and limbs, and is distributed in a centripetal manner. It starts as pink pinhead-sized macules, which turn into papules within a few hours, and then into blisters after a few more hours. The process progresses from macules → papules → blisters → scabs, and the shortest time is only 6 to 8 hours. Rapid development of the rash is one of the characteristics of this disease.

The blisters are slightly oval, 2 to 5 mm in size, with a circle of redness at the base of the blisters. When the blisters begin to dry, the redness also fades. The rash is often very itchy. Chickenpox initially appears as clear water drops, then becomes slightly turbid, and the blisters wall is thin and easy to break. The lesions of chickenpox are superficial and not firm when pressed. After a few days, the center of the blisters begins to dry up and finally forms a scab, which falls off after 1 to 2 weeks. In patients without secondary infection, no scars are left after the scab falls off. When the scab falls off, a light pink depression is left, which then turns white. Because the rash appears in batches, various rashes can be seen existing at the same time during the course of the disease. Rashes are also common in the mucous membranes of the mouth, pharynx, or vulva. In the early stages, they appear as small red papules, which quickly turn into blisters and then rupture into small ulcers. Sometimes the same rash appears on the conjunctiva and throat.