July 25, 2018.
Chickenpox is gaining ground in many areas. How to protect yourself and what reflexes to adopt if a child is affected?
Pays de la Loire very severely affected
The Sentinelles network, the body responsible for monitoring infectious diseases in France, has just warned parents against the advance of the chickenpox epidemic in France. The virus would indeed have strongly progressed in the departments of the Grand-Est region, in particular in Haut-Rhin, Bas-Rhin, Moselle, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse, Ardennes, Marne and part of Vosges.
According to its latest bulletin, in these departments there are nearly 40 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. But the Grand-Est region is not the only one to be affected by this disease, which mainly affects children under 10 years old. “ A strong activity »Has indeed been identified in Pays de la Loire (75 cases per 100,000 inhabitants). In the Hauts-de-France, Center-Val de Loire and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté regions, the epidemic is “ moderate “.
What to do in case of chickenpox?
Chickenpox is manifested by an onset of fever accompanied by a flare-up of small red pimples on the stomach, on the face, then all over the body. These skin lesions are itchy. But the child must be prevented from scratching to avoid causing scarring. Normally, chickenpox disappears after 15 days. Each year, nearly 700,000 cases of chickenpox are identified.
When the weather is very hot, as is the case right now in France, itching may be more severe with sweating. Parents are therefore invited to go to their doctor or pharmacist to obtain either an antihistamine treatment or a lotion to apply to the pimples so that they dry faster. More natural tip: also consider having your child take lukewarm water baths in which you have added a small amount of sodium bicarbonate.
Marine Rondot
Read our full report: Chickenpox
