What are 3 interesting facts about chickenpox?

What are 3 interesting facts about chickenpox?

What Are the Facts on Chicken Pox?

• Chickenpox is caused by the varicella zoster virus.
• Chickenpox is usually mild but it may be severe in infants, adults and persons with an impaired immune system.
• Almost everyone gets chickenpox by adulthood.
• Chickenpox is highly contagious.

How many cases of chickenpox each year?

Approximately 3 to 4 million cases of chickenpox occur every year in the United States, 90% of which are in children below 4 years of age. Illness tends to be more severe in adults.

What is the death rate of chickenpox?

The fatality rate for varicella was approximately 1 per 100,000 cases among children age 1 through 14 years, 6 per 100,000 cases among persons age 15 through 19 years, and 21 per 100,000 cases among adults. Most deaths occur in immunocompetent children and adults.

How common is chickenpox 2020?

In 2020 and 2021, case counts are mostly lower than those seen in previous years at this time. In October, the varicella rate was highest among infants <1 year old at 3.9 cases per 100,000 population, which is consistent with previous months..

Has anyone died of chickenpox?

Deaths are very rare now due to the vaccine program. However, some deaths from chickenpox continue to occur in healthy, unvaccinated children and adults. In the past, many of the healthy adults who died from chickenpox contracted the disease from their unvaccinated children.

How many people died from chicken pox before vaccines?

Many cases of chickenpox are mild, but deaths from this disease can occur. Before vaccine became avail- able, about 100 people died every year in the United States from chickenpox. Most of these people were previously healthy.

What percentage of adults have had chickenpox?

More than 95 percent of American adults have had chickenpox and about 4,000,000 people get chickenpox every year. Since the chickenpox vaccine was introduced in 1995, less and less children are getting the disease.

What age are you most likely to get shingles?

Shingles is most common in people older than 50. The risk increases with age. Having certain diseases. Diseases that weaken your immune system, such as HIV/AIDS and cancer, can increase your risk of shingles.