1 year old potentially has chicken pox. Wife pregnant with baby #2

[WeeG123]

Hi all,

Our 1 year old son had come out in a rash over his back and chest. I took him to weekend GP this morning who said she thinks it’s a rash as a result
of a virus working on him as she found his tonsils were a bit red when doing her checks.

My wife is currently pregnant with Baby Number 2 and is around 12 weeks. It’s just come to our attention tonight that a little boy whose party we were at last Sunday now has chickenpox so we’re thinking the rash could be that.

Just wondering what we would do in this case as my wife is pregnant? I should say aswell she has never had chickenpox before even as a child. Some photos of the rash are attached.

Thanks.

That looks nothing like chicken pox, which are blisters. Why wouldn't you trust the GP?

Nope nothing like chicken pox

Also the incubation period is more than 6 days.

That doesn’t look like chickenpox.

I would suggest once the baby is here your wife gets the chicken pox vaccine as it could make her really poorly as an adult. The nhs is bringing it in for babies but very slowly. She could easily catch it off one of your kids.

I would call 111 and ask for their advice on how to minimise the risk of infection for your wife and any other steps to take. That really doesn’t look like chickenpox but it can be very serious for pregnant women. Does she have a midwife assigned you both can talk to? Definitely seek professional advice. This won’t be unusual and I’m sure professionals will be helpful.

edited for very unhelpful autocorrect!

I've got to say that doesn't look like chickenpox to me. It usually starts with distinct red spots that develop a yellow head.

Would your wife consider a chickenpox vaccine if it's safe in pregnancy? You don't want to get CP when pregnant if you have never had it. I thought it was one of the ones they test immunity for?

Get her to have the chicken pox vaccine once she has baby
Its not recommend in pregnancy as its a live vaccine

When did the rash first appear, you would expect it to have started to blister by now if it was chicken pox as they normally come out fairly quickly. And he'd be very itchy and unhappy.

I'm afraid if your wife has been around your 1 year old for the last few days then she's already been exposed. As they are normally most cottages before the rash comes out anyway. You could maybe take care of your baby for now and see if your wife develops symptoms. If could turn out to be something else.

That doesn’t look like chicken pox at all. However if your ds has been in the same room as a child with chicken pox then it’s probably on its way .

If it does become chickenpox your wife can see her own GP for aciclovir tablets to be taken 7 days after exposure, so don't worry, there's no emergency. She'll have plenty of time to act if and when the rash shows itself.
I do think it's rather silly to have 2 pregnancies knowing you've never had CP and not be vaccinated beforehand. I had my son done and it was £160 for 2 doses. Small price to pay to avoid the potential complications to a fetus.

If you wife was also at the party follow this advice:
If you’re not immune to chickenpox – if you are exposed to chickenpox and have never had chicken or are unsure, you would need to see your GP as soon as possible. Depending on how far along you are in your pregnancy, chickenpox can potentially cause serious health issues for yourself and your unborn baby and you might need an injection of varicella zoster immune globulin (VZIG) to help prevent this. If you do come into contact with someone with chickenpox and you are not immune then you should get in contact with your GP as soon as possible, even if you aren’t displaying any symptoms.

Fairly sure there is a Immuniglobulin which can be given to at risk pregnant women. Might be worth a call to 111 in case there is a limit on how long after potential exposure it needs to be given.
DC1 had chicken pox when I was pregnant with DC2, GPs first question was whether I had had it, as he needed to organise an immunoglobulin if I hadn't

That's not chicken pox. It's hives/viral rash. Your wife needs the CP vaccine. DD and DH had it as soon as DD was old enough and before she started nursery. Well worth it.

My wife has own personal reasons to not take certain vaccines are some caused her mum to take a major stroke at 45. Less judgement please.

The guidance has now been updated to show that oral antivirals are the first choice for most women. See this webpage and which links to the references:
www.nbmedical.com/blog/chickenpox-exposure-in-pregnancy-avoid-rash-mistakes

GP said she didn’t think it was chickenpox. Not 100% certain. Obviously after hearing about the child whose party we were at now had it, it alarmed us.

I can understand that but is chicken pox one of them? As presumably her mum didn’t have that.
If you don’t vaccinate your own children against it or keep away from other children very likely your wife will catch it one day and get very sick.

It might be worth your wife getting her immunity tested for her peace of mind/information.

It's not impossible that she's had very mild chicken pox that's gone unnoticed and was lucky enough for that to have provided immunity.

She'll likely have to pay for it, but she could ask her GP ir midwife.

I agree though, if she was at the party then she should mke sure that the GP knows she's been exposed and can advise whether preventative treatment is needed.

That is not chicken pox. It does look like a viral rash or an allergic reaction to something.

Your wife's stance on vaccines could turn out to be dangerous for the children if she doesn't want them vaccinated either!

Yeah, better take the infinitesimally tiny chance that a vaccine causes a complication rather than the whacking great risk of chicken pox causing stillbirth.

Chickenpox spots turn into fluid filled blisters.
Incubation period is 10-21 days and they are contagious for 1-2 before spots appear and until they scab over.

It looks like more a viral rash than the pox, but I would certainly get an immunity test through the dr aaap to see if she has any immunity

All sympathy disappeared when she won't get vaccinated.

If she catches chicken pox as an adult from either of your children, she will be regretting never being vaccinated. It is the worst thing as an adult, however your wife's decision is her own and she will have to face the consequences

Vaccinate your one year old against it if he hasn't got it this time. Why take the risk?

That doesn't look like chicken pox, but if your wife has no immunity to chicken pox and he had it, she'd already have caught it and be very ill indeed. Hopefully you've had a lucky escape this time and you can take him to get vaccinated as soon as he's over this virus. She needs to be vaccinated too as soon as she's had the baby!