CHICKEN POX AND HOMEOPATHIC REMEDIES

                                                                    CHICKEN POX

DEFINITION:-

 Chicken-pox is an acute infectious disease caused by varicella- zoster virus (VZV) and characterized by successive crops of superficial vesicular eruptions and severe fever, headache and malaise.

CAUSES AND SPREAD:-

-          Mainly caused by varicella-zoster virus same as herpes zoster virus.

-          Most commonly affects children under 10 years of age.

-          The disease spreads by droplet infection, through hands and clothing of attendants, by fomites, or by actual contact with the patients.

-          The average incubation period is 14 days.

SYMPTOMS:-

-          Low grade fever, malaise, headache and backache.

-          The rash usually appears on the 2^nd day.

-          The rash 1^st appears on trunk, especially the back, face and upper part of the limbs. The axillae also involved. Rashes are most thickly populated on trunk and thin over the distal parts of the body.

-          Macules appear first which quickly (within few hours) change over to papules and within few hours turns to vesicles.

-          The vesicles are superficial, thin walled, pyramidal in shape (like a top hat) and pearly white in colour. The rashes often been compared to the morning dew drops.

-          The rashes are very fragile and easily get ruptured with intense itching.

-          Within 24 hours the vesicles change in pustules which dry up and form scabs within few days, scabs peel off easily without leaving any permanent spots or scars.

COMPLICATIONS:-

-          Secondary skin infections like boils, abscesses and bed sores.

-          Meningo encephalomyelitis.

-          Varicella pneumonia.

-          Congenital deformities in fetus if during pregnancy

-          Chicken pox in pregnant mothers may cause foetal death.

TREATMENT:-

-          The patient should be isolated and kept in bed till the formation of scabs and till fresh eruptions stop appearing.

-          Itching may be relieved by antihistaminic drugs orally.

-          Anti biotics is needed for preventing any secondary infection.

-          Acyclovir may be used in an immunocompromised patient (800mg four times for 7 days).

-          Avoid spicy foods. Take liquid items and nutritious food and fruit juices.

HOMEOPATHIC TREATMENT:-

1.       ANTIMONIUM CRUDUM:-

 Pimples, pustules, and boils on face. Yellow crusted eruption on cheeks and chin. Diarrhoea after acids, sour wine, baths, overeating; slimy, flatulent stools. Pimples, vesicles, and pustules on skin. Scaly, pustular eruption with burning and itching, worse at night. Intermittent with disgust, nausea, vomiting, eructations, coated tongue, diarrhoea. Itching when warm in bed.

2.       ANTIMONIUM TART:-

Given early it will reduce the fever, the pustules will run their normal course and leave very little or no pitting. Especially useful for pulmonary and gastric disturbances. Abortive power is claimed for it. Its the chief remedy in all stages of chicken pox.

3.       BELLADONNA:-

Preferred to aconite, by some for the initial fever. Congestion of head, throbbing carotids. Starts and jumps in his sleep and other well known symptoms of this drug. Erythema; pustules on face. Eruption like scarlatina, suddenly spreading.

4.       MERC SOUL:-

 Yellow colour of the skin, with perspiration which imparts a yellow colour to linen. Miliary, urticarial, pimpled, or pustular and purulent eruptions. For the suppurative fever. To be given as soon as pus appears in the eruption.

5.       RHUSTOXI:-

It is one of the best remedy for chicken pox. It works well in eruptive stage; the skin is inflamed with stinging, burning and itching. Invaluable, often modifies in considerable degree the cutaneous inflammation and thus favorably influencing the future of the case.

6.       SULPHUR:-

Dirty, filthy people, prone to skin affections. Very weak and faint about 11 am; must have something to eat. Very sensitive to pressure; internal feeling of rawness and soreness. Morning diarrhoea, painless, drives out of bed, with prolapsus recti. Talks, jerks, and twitches during sleep. Dry, scaly, unhealthy; every little injury suppurates. Pimply eruption, pustules, rhagades, hang-nails. Itching, burning; worse scratching and washing.

Some of other drugs are aconite, carb veg, ledum pal, silicea, sepia, coffea, hyoscyamus and thuja.