Can you catch chicken pox twice

It can be especially serious for babies, adults, and people with weakened immune systems. The varicella-zoster virus VZV causes chickenpox. The telltale symptom of chickenpox is a blisterlike rash that first usually appears on the stomach, back, and face. The rash typically spreads over the whole body, causing to fluid-filled blisters.

They then break open, turning into sores that eventually scab over. The rash can be incredibly itchy and is often accompanied by fatigue , headache , and fever. Though uncommon, you can get chickenpox more than once. The majority of people who have had chickenpox will have immunity from it for the remainder of their lives. In some cases, a person who appears to be developing chickenpox for the second time is actually having their first case of chickenpox. Some rashes can mimic chickenpox.

It may be that that person actually never had chickenpox before, but instead received a misdiagnosis. You may not get chickenpox twice, but VZV could make you sick twice. Shingles is a painful rash of blisters. The rash develops on one side of the face or body and typically lasts about three weeks. The blisters usually scab over in a week or two. Shingles may lead to significant complications, but this is rare. You need to take it within 24 hours of the spots appearing.

They can arrange a phone call from a nurse or doctor if you need one. Go to You can catch chickenpox by being in the same room as someone with it. It's also spread by touching clothes or bedding that has fluid from the blisters on them.

Chickenpox is infectious from 2 days before the spots appear, until they have all crusted over — usually 5 days after they first appeared. It takes 1 to 3 weeks from the time you were exposed to chickenpox for the spots to start appearing. It's rare to get chickenpox when you're pregnant, and the chance of it causing complications is low. If you do get chickenpox when you're pregnant, there's a small risk of your baby being very ill when it's born.

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Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy. Related Articles. Preventing Chickenpox: From Handwashing to Vaccination.

How Shingles Is Diagnosed. An Alphabetical List of Rashes. Is Shingles Contagious? Shingles in Children. Shingles vs. The virus spreads mainly through close contact with someone who has chickenpox. A person with chickenpox is considered contagious beginning 1 to 2 days before rash onset until all the chickenpox lesions have crusted scabbed. Vaccinated people who get chickenpox may develop lesions that do not crust. These people are considered contagious until no new lesions have appeared for 24 hours.

CDC strongly recommends against hosting or participating in these events. Chickenpox can be serious and can lead to severe complications and death, even in healthy children. So it is not worth taking the chance of exposing your child to someone with the disease. The best way to protect infants and children against chickenpox is to get them vaccinated.