chicken pox while pregnant?

Question

Iam 29 weeks pregnant and my two year old's nursery has had an outbreak of the chicken pox. She has a tempture and a runny nose. Could this be the early signs of the chicken pox? and what damage can it do to my unborn baby. Please help

Ive never had them before and ive been told iam a carrier. Ive been intouch with my midwife and ive got to wait for my blood test results to come back. As i might need an injection.

Answer 1

That could be early signs of the chicken pox. It usually takes about 10 days for the rash to actually appear. The pox are contagious until they have all scabbed over.... If you have had the chicken pox and at this stage of your pregnancy, there should be no affect on the unborn baby. If you are not sure whether you are immune to chicken pox or not, there is a simple blood test that your OB can do to determine this. The only time chicken pox exposure is really harmful is very early on in the pregnancy or if the mother has never had the chicken pox. This can cause limb malformations and other abnormalities. My grandmother actually had the chicken pox early on during her pregnancy with my aunt. My aunt was born with one leg much shorter than the other and it had to be amputated. I think you are in the clear though, but definitely inform your OB of the possible exposure and he/she will know what to do from there. Good luck!! :)

Answer 2

It could be Chicken Pox and you do have to be careful.

My sister is in the same position at the moment (although 31 weeks) - and she's been advised to avoid anyone with the pox.

Apparently there is a stage near the end of the pregnancy where contracting chicken pox could make the baby immune.

If you're unsure about anything - contact your midwife.


[edit] - just remembered something else my sister said. If you've had it before you can still pass it to the baby.

Answer 3

have you yourself ever have chicken pox? because my mom never had chicken pox until she was pregnant with my brother... when she went to the doctor's office they told her that it was best if she aborted the child due to the fact that he could develop multiple abnormalities... but since it was my mother's first child after trying so long to conceive... she decided to reject the abortion no matter what the risks... and love the child no matter how he came out...

and well in the end she ended up having a healthy baby boy who became the best big brother i can ever ask for... so what im saying is don't always listen to the doctor's advice because they're not always right....

Answer 4

if you have already had chicken pox as a child you and your unborn baby will be fine, it is very unlikely that you will get it more than once, they symptoms your daughter has sounds like the start of chicken pox, my daughter also complained of feeling sick a few days before the spots came out.

Answer 5

You need to go see the doctor, both for you and your daughter. Contracting chicken pox can be bad for your baby.

Answer 6

What can happen to my baby if I get chicken pox while I'm pregnant?
Chances are good that no harm will come to your baby, but timing is a factor.

If you get chicken pox during the first half of pregnancy, there's a slight risk that your baby will get something called congenital varicella syndrome. This condition is characterized by birth defects, including skin scarring, malformed limbs, an abnormally small head, vision or hearing problems, and motor or mental developmental disabilities. A baby with congenital varicella syndrome may also suffer poor growth in utero.

If you do contract chicken pox, you'll have a detailed ultrasound at 18 to 20 weeks to look for signs of defects or other problems and at least one follow-up sonogram later to see how your baby is doing. You may also choose to meet with a genetic counselor to discuss the risks in your particular case and decide how you want to proceed.

If you get chicken pox in the second half of pregnancy but more than five days before giving birth, your baby will probably be fine. Here's why: About five days after coming down with chicken pox, your body develops antibodies to the virus and passes them to your baby through the placenta, offering protection that his own immature immune system can't provide.

If you develop chicken pox five to 21 days before your baby is born, he might develop chicken pox days after birth, but because of the antibodies he received from you, it's much less likely to be serious. (Some babies exposed to chicken pox in utero, particularly those exposed five to 21 days before birth, develop a case of shingles during infancy or early childhood without having had chicken pox after birth, but it's usually not serious.)

The most risky time to come down with chicken pox is between five days before giving birth and two days after delivery, because then your baby is exposed to the virus but doesn't have had time to receive antibodies from you before birth. In this case, he has a 30 to 40 percent chance of developing what's called neonatal varicella, or newborn chicken pox, which can be serious and even life threatening, especially if left untreated.

Fortunately, your baby's risk of a severe case can be greatly reduced if he gets a shot of varicella zoster immune globulin (VZIG), a blood product that contains chicken pox antibodies. He'll be given the shot soon after birth if your chicken pox showed up within five days of delivery or as soon as you discover your rash if it's within two days after delivery.

If your baby shows any sign of developing the infection — such as coming down with a fever or showing a rash of even a few spots — he'll be treated intravenously with the antiviral drug acyclovir.

Answer 7

I'm not sure about pox. I know rubella is extremely serious in pregnancy.

I had it, and had to stay off work for four weeks as one of my colleagues was pregnant at the time.

Answer 8

Very little damage can be done to an unborn baby when you get sick. YOU would have to get chicken pox for your unborn baby to get them and then it would have to get through your immune system to the baby. The immune system is pretty good at keeping your blood clean. Even if the fetus gets mild pox it will actually make them less likely to get it later in life.
Don't worry about it.

Answer 9

yes it sounds like your 2 year old is about to come out in them
however wait till your blood tests come back but i'm sure it is only bad for you to get them in the first 12 weeks but i'm not 100% on that

Answer 10

if you get chicken pox it could kill your baby so you need to ask your doctor about a shot