would you take a kid recovering from chickenpox swimming?

[CarolinaMoon]

took ds swimming yesterday, and there was a little girl there who had fresh chickenpox scars, some with the scabs still on them.

Now, I know the advice about the infectious period for chickenpox has changed, but does anyone think it's a bit odd to take a child swimming so soon afterwards? Or just me...

[purpleturtle]

It's the kind of thing I would do.

[LIZS]

"odd" in what sense ? that she took ehr dd swimming and may have been contagious or that you wouldn't take your child swimming with fresh scars even if not ? dd was in and out of our paddling pool when she had c'pox last summer and it actally seemed to help. Only the ones on her face scarred and she wasn't itchy.

[HRHQueenOfQuelNoel]

Hmm - if they'd scabbed over then yes I'd probably take them out - but perhaps not swimming..

[iota]

I wouldn't - -but only from the pt of view that the chlorine might irritate her skin

[CarolinaMoon]

LIZS, my first thought was crikey, I hope that's not contagious. I had to check on the internet when I got home because I didn't know what the infectious period was. So I suppose I thought if it was me, I might not want to go round freaking other parents out (albeit only mildly, and obv not if they know anything about chickenpox).

QoQ, it was the fact that a) they are really obvious when you can see the kid's entire body, as in a swimming pool and b) being in a pool with someone who's infectious is (presumably) a good way to catch that disease.

Ds is 14mo and my first, hence my paranoid parenting.

[MrsSpoon]

I wouldn't if they were at the scabby stage because I can still remember my DSs' scabs falling off in the bath, when you let the water drain they were alll sitting in the bottom, yuck.

[SoupDragon]

Ewwww! No way for exactly the reason MrsSpoon gives! Your own paddling pool is one thing but a public pool... nooooo.

[CarolinaMoon]

MrsSpoon, that's gross

[FrannyandZooey]

I have seen this too and think it is not on. Definitely the scabs will fall off and be floating around in the water. Obviously once the contagious period has passed there is no need to stay away from other people, but going swimming is just unnecessary and yuk. Ooh aren't I uptight today?

[CarolinaMoon]

well, that makes two of us Franny

[misdee]

sorry, i wont take dd2 swimming till all her cabs are off then.

btw what are you views on kids with eczema (cracked and scabbed) being in the pool?


chickenpox cannot be transwferred through sharing bathwater so i suspect the chlorine in the pool would kill it v v v quickly.

[CarolinaMoon]

can't it? oops, didn't know that

[CarolinaMoon]

Eczema isn't infectious at all, it's a whole different thing from an infectious disease that people take steps to avoid being passed from their kid to other kids.

[misdee]

but ehat about the scabs?

[LIZS]

Personally I wouldn't have taken dd to a public pool at that stage but more from my fear of aggravating her skin and the looks we might get than any altruistic purpose. Agree scabs floating would not be nice.

[CarolinaMoon]

but you don't get the huge cornflake-style chickenpox scabs with eczema, do you?

No one's saying eczema's gross.

[SoupDragon]

If the excema was that bad wouldn't the chlorine in the pool be a nightmare though?

[SoupDragon]

Do excema scabs "shed" in the same way that CP ones do?

[MrsSpoon]

I would imagine most cases of excema would not create the same about of scabs as chicken pox would (although may be wrong)? Also chicken pox is a short lived event, I'm sure someone could just miss swimming that week until the scabs came off. Similar thoughts to Soupdragon about chlorine if the excema was particularly bad I wouldn't have thought swimming was the best idea.

[misdee]

dd1 has shed laods of scabs in the bath before. she flakes terribly. rarely take her to the pool tho.

and it can be gross

[FrannyandZooey]

As I was posting "yuk" it did occur to me that some children have other skin complaints that should not prevent them from swimming, but I think it's a completely different kettle of fish misdee (or a completely different pool of scabs )

A child with severe exczema or other skin complaint might cause you to do a double take in the pool, but I'm sure most people would feel only sympathy. When you get into a public swimming pool you have to accept a certain amount of sharing of bodily fluids, skin particles, hair etc is going to go on (one of the reasons I hate going), but chicken pox scabs are another thing entirely and just revolting [shudder]

[daisy1999]

even if they weren't infectious I wouldn't take them as I wouldn't want the embarrasment for either me or them. Plus if the scabs come off in the water - yuk yuk yuk.
I would have thought it unwise to have any open wounds due to the vast amount of infections that can be passed on in pools. My friends ds gets an eye infection every time he goes to a public pool!

[getbakainyourjimjams]

I took ds1 when he was recovering from eczema herpeticum and his skin was still very bad misdee- coated with loads of 50:50 before and after. I wouldn't take a child with chickenpox scabs though.

[misdee]

i wouldnt either JJ, dd2 would pick them al loff.

[grammaticus]

Yuk no, not fair on everyone else, plus the scabs would go all soggy and even if they didn't fall off (which they would!) it would hardly help them to heal, would it. Also the pool is a good place to pick up bugs when your immune system is low. So all round, no.