Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

General health

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Flip

Original poster

Chickenpox question

11 replies

linnet · 18/09/2004 23:54

Can babies under 1 year old get chickenpox?

My granny says that they can't but I'm not sure that I believe her.

OP posts:

saintshar · 18/09/2004 23:55

YES!!

My DS2 had them when he was 10 mths.

zaphod · 19/09/2004 00:21

My ds had them at 5 months.

lilsmum · 19/09/2004 00:35

definately!! my dd was 3mth when she got chicken pox.... i must say it didnt bother her at all and now in hindsight i think it is better for kids to get it young.... less likely to be able to scratch and cause scars

blossom2 · 19/09/2004 00:38

DD had it when she was 4.5 months so your granny (sorry) is talking rubbish ... they can also have it quite badly (i.e. completely covered in spots,ill for 3/4 days) and lilsmum is right - they dont have the co-ordination to scratch at a young age ...

unfortunately DD still has scars - exactly in the same places i've got my chickenpox scars ... we're just waiting to see if they will disappear when she's older ....

Bozza · 19/09/2004 21:25

Well Linnet I'm probably about to find out. . DS is gradually getting more spotty and as you know DD is 4 months.

Twiglett · 19/09/2004 21:34

message withdrawn

Original poster

linnet · 19/09/2004 21:47

I knew I was right

Sorry don't mean to sound like I'm gloating. My granny was going to visit a friend in a nursing home who has Shingles and I said I hope you don't come back and give dd2 the chickenpox. Although now that I think about it isn't it the chickenpox virus that gives you shingles so you wouldn't actually catch chickenpox from someone with shingles it would be the other way round or something, you have to have had the chickenpox before getting shingles?

Anyway granny said they can't catch it this young as when her neice was born, in my grannys house, my mum was a toddler and had chicken pox but the baby didn't catch them. I've heard this story before though and I know that the baby got one spot on her back and that was it and now that she's an adult she's never had chickenpox but is immune to them. So my conclusion is that she must have just the one spot and that was it, therefore she did catch it.

sorry that's so longwinded.

OP posts:

hmb · 19/09/2004 22:01

ds had it at 3 months, but a very mild dose. Lots of the spots faded before they came to a scab IYSWIM.

Yes you have to have had cp before you can get shingles. The virus never realy leaves the system but lies dormant in the nerves. If you become very run down, or have another infection it can re-activate causing shingles. The reason it come up in lines is that it follows the 'path' of the nerve. The cold sore virus does the same sort of thing and they are'related' viruses.

Slinky · 19/09/2004 22:03

Yep, my DS got CP when he was 3.5 weeks old!

He then got shingles when he was 18 months - and yes someone who has never had CP CAN catch chicken pox from shingles - but you can't catch shingles from CP.

Bozza · 20/09/2004 21:15

But linnet the only way your DD would have got cp was if she had gone with your granny to the home - assuming your granny has had cp that is.

Original poster

linnet · 20/09/2004 21:33

Yes granny has had chicken pox, well she didn't cath it when dd1 had it so I guess she must be immune.

It was just when she mentioned that her friend had Shingles alarm bells started ringing and I thought No I don't want dd2 to get cp we're going on holiday soon. I realise now that I've thought about it, and it's been explained by Hmb in a much better way than the way I tried to say it, that dd2 would be ok.

How is your ds doing?

OP posts:

Flip