Number of Chickenpox Cases Soars to 5-Year High|上週水痘就診人數 創5年同期新高

Chickenpox cases are on the rise. The Centers for Disease Control says the number of patients that were treated for chickenpox last week was a five-year high for that time of year. There have been 12 cluster infections so far. Most of the patients are young children.


All one-year-olds in Taiwan get the chickenpox vaccine, but the shot doesn't guarantee that children won't get chickenpox later on. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 873 people were treated for chickenpox last week, which is higher than the 645 treated during the same week last year. The 873 was a five-year high. Eleven of the 12 cluster infections identified in the last four weeks originated at schools.

In less than 5 percent of children, the protection wanes after seven years. In truth, these children may get chickenpox again after coming into contact with chickenpox.

Chickenpox is highly contagious and infections peak in the winter and early spring. The virus has an incubation period of two to three weeks and can be spread through direct skin contact, the airborne route or secretions. People with chickenpox are the most contagious from five days before their first rash appears to five days after their first blister appears. One expert says the vaccine administered to one-year-olds may not be effective given the current outbreak.

Antibodies from vaccines generally don't last that long. Many chickenpox patients are in preschool or elementary school. Parents should ideally get their children vaccinated when they turn one and then again before they start school.

However, the CDC says chickenpox rarely results in severe symptoms and is only a danger to infants under a year old, pregnant women, and immunodeficient people. The CDC says as long as infected people wash their hands and wear masks, they are unlikely to infect others.