Reply #46: Pregnant women and immunocompromised should NOT be around chickenpox. [View All]

[uppityperson]

I grew up before the vaccine and we had these parties since most of us would end up getting it anyway. Now, with the vaccine, I think these are a REALLY bad idea. People for whom the vaccine is contraindicated would also be at severe risk by trying to get, or even getting, chickenpox.

Here is some info on pregnancy risks.

http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/bacterial_viral/chicken_pox.html
Pregnant women and anyone with immune system problems should not be near a person with chickenpox. If a pregnant woman who hasn't had chickenpox in the past contracts it (especially in the first 20 weeks of pregnancy), the fetus is at risk for birth defects and she is at risk for more health complications than if she'd been infected when she wasn't pregnant. If she develops chickenpox just before or after the child is born, the newborn is at risk for serious health complications. There is no risk to the developing baby if the woman develops shingles during the pregnancy.

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/chickenpox/DS00053
Before the vaccine became available, about 4 million children in the Unites States contracted chickenpox each year, and nearly 11,000 people were hospitalized and about 100 people died each year from chickenpox infections. Thanks to the vaccine, the number of cases and hospitalizations is down dramatically.
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Chickenpox and pregnancy
Other complications of chickenpox affect pregnant women. Chickenpox early on in pregnancy can result in a variety of problems in a newborn, including low birth weight and birth defects, such as limb abnormalities. A greater threat to a baby occurs when the mother develops chickenpox in the week before birth. Then it can cause a serious, life-threatening infection in a newborn.

http://www.webmd.com/hw-popup/complications-of-chickenpox-during-pregnancy
Pregnant women who have chickenpox are at risk of complications. The type of complications depend on when the infection developed during pregnancy.

* Pregnant women who have chickenpox during the first half of pregnancy may go into labor early (premature labor) or have a miscarriage.
* Pregnant women who have chickenpox in the last part of pregnancy are more likely to develop varicella pneumonia. Even a healthy pregnant woman is at risk of dying if she develops varicella pneumonia.
* Up to 2 out of 100 fetuses whose mothers have chickenpox during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy will also get chickenpox.1 This is called congenital varicella and can cause:
o Birth defects. Birth defects can include one limb (usually a leg) smaller than the other, scars on the limbs, or eye problems such as cloudy lenses.
o Low birth weight (weigh less than expected at birth).
o Seizures. The baby can have seizures after birth.
o Mental retardation.
o Shingles. Fetuses who have chickenpox will not have chickenpox again. But they can still have shingles, even as babies or young children.
o Death. Up to 7 out of 100 of the fetuses who get congenital varicella die.2
* Babies born within a few days of their mothers' chickenpox infection have a risk of severe chickenpox infection. These babies are at greater risk of complications from chickenpox.