Chickenpox vaccination pregnancy

What women should know about chickenpox, vaccination, and pregnancy | Your Pregnancy Matters

Chickenpox may not be as common as it once was, but it can still present a risk to pregnant women who have not had the virus or the vaccine.

Before a vaccine became available in 1995, chickenpox was almost considered a childhood rite of passage. But while many people have tales of chickenpox parties – purposely infecting kids to “get it out of the way” – it’s important to remember this isn’t an entirely harmless disease. In the early 1990s, up to 13,000 people were hospitalized due to the virus and 100 to 150 people died each year.

It’s estimated that in the U.S., more than 3.5 million cases of chickenpox, 9,000 hospitalizations, and 100 deaths are prevented by the chickenpox vaccine each year. Chickenpox is still with us, and it can have devastating consequences, particularly for pregnant women and their babies.

In 2021, a woman in Illinois contracted chickenpox early in pregnancy and gave birth to a premature baby who died shortly after delivery. It was confirmed the baby had congenital varicella syndrome – chickenpox in utero.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all adults be assessed for immunity to chickenpox. So, don’t be surprised if your healthcare provider asks you about chickenpox if you are pregnant or are thinking about becoming pregnant. As always, we just want to keep you and your baby as safe and healthy as possible.

Potential complications of chickenpox in pregnancy

Chickenpox is a highly contagious disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus. Chickenpox generally causes an itchy, blister-like rash. But pregnant women are at risk for more serious complications, particularly pneumonia, because changes in the immune system during pregnancy make them more susceptible to infection.

Pregnant women also can pass the virus to their babies. Much like rubella or Zika, if a woman gets chickenpox in her first or early second trimester, the virus can cause birth defects. Symptoms of congenital varicella syndrome can include:

Arm and leg abnormalities
Eye abnormalities
Low birth weight
Microcephaly, a condition in which a baby’s head is significantly smaller than expected
Premature birth
Scarring on the skin from chickenpox lesions

If a woman develops chickenpox shortly before going into labor, the newborn is at risk of being born with chickenpox. While such complications are rare, it’s important to take steps to prevent them, to be aware of their potential, and be on the lookout for chickenpox during pregnancy.

Are you at risk for chickenpox?

While the chickenpox vaccine has been around since 1995, there is still a population of women who are susceptible to the disease. This includes women who:

Didn’t have access to the vaccine, perhaps because they come from a country without a robust childhood immunization program
Were not vaccinated due to their parents’ choice
Thought they had chickenpox as children but actually didn’t

For the last several decades, about 90% of children have gotten vaccinated against chickenpox, which means 1 in 10 of our younger pregnant patients may not be immune to the virus.

If you don’t have documentation of being diagnosed with or vaccinated against chickenpox as a child, your healthcare provider may suggest blood testing to determine whether you have antibodies to the varicella-zoster virus. If you don’t, we recommend you get two doses of the chickenpox vaccine before pregnancy or after delivery.

If you were born before 1980, you are presumed to be immune to chickenpox due to the number of circulating viruses when you were young. However, women who are immunocompromised, pregnant, or a healthcare provider should get tested for antibodies due to increased risks of getting or spreading the virus if they do not have good records of having received the vaccine.

Related reading: Why we discuss vaccines, maternal health during pregnancy

Can you get the chickenpox vaccine during pregnancy?

The chickenpox vaccine contains a live attenuated (inactive) virus – similar to the measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine (MMR) – so you cannot get vaccinated if you are currently pregnant. However, we will strongly suggest you get a first dose of the vaccine after you give birth to protect you, your baby, and future pregnancies. The vaccine is safe for breastfeeding women and babies.

If you know you haven’t had chickenpox or the vaccine and you’re thinking about having a baby, talk to your healthcare provider about getting and finishing the vaccine series at least three months before you start trying to get pregnant. This is the best way to protect yourself and your baby from chickenpox.

Related reading: Which prenatal vitamins should I take?

One more note: The varicella vaccine also potentially protects you from shingles, another painful adult virus. Shingles is a reactivation of the chickenpox virus, and it can cause a painful rash along with headache, chills, upset stomach, and eye problems. If you’re vaccinated against chickenpox and never get the disease, you’re protected against shingles as well.

Chickenpox is not as common as it used to be, but it’s still around – and it’s still potentially dangerous. The good news is there are ways we can protect ourselves and our children. Talk with your healthcare provider about your chickenpox history and whether you should get the varicella vaccine before or after pregnancy.

For more information about the varicella vaccine and whether you need it, call 214-645-8300 or request an appointment online.

Chickenpox during pregnancy | March of Dimes

Chickenpox is an infection caused by a virus. If you get it during pregnancy, it can cause problems for you and your baby.

You’re probably safe from chickenpox if you’ve had it before or if you’ve had the vaccine. Both of these help make you immune to chickenpox.

Talk to your health care provider to make sure you’re immune to chickenpox before you get pregnant or early in pregnancy.

What is chickenpox?

Chickenpox is an infection caused by a virus called the varicella-zoster virus. Chickenpox used to be a common infection, especially in children under age 12. It’s less common now because a vaccine is available to help prevent it. A vaccine is medicine that makes you immune to certain diseases.

Chickenpox usually isn’t dangerous in children. But some people are at higher risk for complications from chickenpox, including pregnant people and newborns.

The chances of getting chickenpox during pregnancy are low. Most pregnant people are immune to chickenpox because they’ve had the infection before or they’ve been vaccinated against it. Talk with your health care provider to make sure you’re immune to chickenpox before you get pregnant or early in pregnancy.

What are the symptoms of chickenpox?

Chickenpox causes an itchy rash that turns into blisters and then scabs. The rash usually starts on the chest, back, and face and spreads all over the body. The rash appears about 10 to 21 days after you’re infected and can last 5 to 10 days.

Other symptoms can include fever, headache, being tired and not being hungry. These symptoms may appear 1 to 2 days before the rash.

How does chickenpox spread?

If you’re not immune to chickenpox, you can get it easily by being in contact with someone who has the infection. A person with chickenpox can spread the infection starting about 2 days before the rash appears and until all the blisters are covered by scabs. It can spread through:

Droplets in the air when someone with chickenpox coughs or sneezes
The saliva (spit) or mucus of someone with chickenpox
Touching a chickenpox rash

If you’re not immune to chickenpox, you can also get it through close contact with someone who has shingles. Shingles is an infection caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox. If you’ve had chickenpox before, the virus stays in your body and can come back later as shingles. Shingles causes a painful rash on one side of the face or body. People with shingles can spread chickenpox to other people, but they can’t spread shingles to other people.

Can chickenpox during pregnancy cause problems for you and your baby?

Yes. Having chickenpox during pregnancy can increase your risk of getting pneumonia and can even be life-threatening. Pneumonia is a lung infection that can be very serious. The symptoms of pneumonia include cough, chest pain when you breathe or cough, fever, fatigue (being very tired) and shortness of breath.

Chickenpox during pregnancy can cause these problems for your baby:

If you get chickenpox during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy, your baby may have an increased risk for congenital varicella syndrome. This is a rare group of serious birth defects that can cause:

Scars on the skin
Problems with the arms, legs, brain and eyes
Gastrointestinal complications
Low birthweight. This is when a baby is born weighing less than 5 pounds, 8 ounces.

If you get chickenpox between 2 weeks before birth to 2 weeks after birth, you can pass the infection to your baby. If this happens, the infection in your baby usually is mild.

If you get chickenpox immediately before or right after birth (5 days before birth to 2 days after birth), your baby may have an increased risk for a serious infection called neonatal varicella. This infection can be life-threatening, but treatment is helping more babies survive.

If you have a preterm birth, your newborn may be at higher risk of complications from chickenpox. Preterm birth is birth that happens before 37 weeks of pregnancy.

Can you prevent chickenpox?

Yes. The varicella vaccine can protect you from chickenpox. In fact, this vaccine prevents more than 3.5 million cases of chickenpox each year. But the vaccine is not safe to get during pregnancy.

Talk to your provider if you’re pregnant or planning a pregnancy and you’re not sure if you've had the vaccine or had chickenpox before. Your provider can do a blood test to find out if you’re immune.

If you aren’t immune, how can you protect yourself from chickenpox during pregnancy?

If you’re planning a pregnancy and the blood test shows you’re not immune, get vaccinated. You get the vaccine in two doses. It’s best to wait 3 months after the second dose before getting pregnant.

If you’re already pregnant, don’t get the vaccine until after you give birth. In the meantime, stay away from anyone who has chickenpox or shingles.

Tell your provider right away if you’re pregnant and you come into contact with someone who has chickenpox. Your provider can treat you with medicine that has chickenpox antibodies. Antibodies help the body fight infections. It’s important to get treatment within 10 days after you’ve come into contact with chickenpox to help prevent the infection or make it less serious. And tell your provider if you come in contact with a person who has shingles. Your provider can decide if you need treatment to help prevent you from getting infected.

How is chickenpox diagnosed?

Your provider can tell you if you have chickenpox by doing a physical exam. Your provider may do a blood test or take a swab of the rash and send it to a laboratory for testing to be sure it’s chickenpox.

How is chickenpox treated during pregnancy?

If you get chickenpox during pregnancy, your provider may give you an antiviral medicine such as acyclovir or valacyclovir. An antiviral is a medicine to treat infections caused by viruses. These medicines are safe to use during pregnancy. They work best when given within 24 hours of the chickenpox rash appearing.

If you have chickenpox and develop signs or symptoms of pneumonia, your provider may want you to stay in the hospital and be treated with acyclovir through an IV (through a needle into a vein).

If you get chickenpox during pregnancy, how is your baby treated after birth?

If you have chickenpox during pregnancy, your baby’s provider may treat your baby right after birth with medicine that has chickenpox antibodies. The medicine can help prevent chickenpox in your baby or make it less dangerous. If your baby gets chickenpox in the 2 weeks after birth, your baby may also be treated with antiviral medicine.

Can you get chickenpox from someone who has gotten the vaccine?

Yes, but it’s rare. If a vaccinated person gets chickenpox, they can still spread it to others. But the vaccine is more than 90 percent effective at preventing chickenpox. Providers recommend that children get their first dose of the varicella vaccine at 12 to 15 months of age and the second dose at age 4 to 6.

Last reviewed: May 2021

Chickenpox vaccine for children - what is it, when is it done

Many consider chickenpox (chickenpox) to be a harmless infection. And not unreasonably, because in most children the disease proceeds without complications. So what is the chickenpox vaccine for? To avoid the development of possible complications. Vaccination is one of the leading means of protection against infection.

In general, the disease is more severe in adolescents and adults than in pediatric patients. After chickenpox is cured, the viruses remain in the nerve endings forever. A person with a weakened immune defense may develop a painful rash and inflammation in the area of the affected nerve in the future. Then the so-called herpes zoster develops.

Chickenpox vaccination is given to reduce the risk of herpes type 3 infection and is aimed at preventing the development of encephalitis, pneumonia, and death. Children are allowed to be vaccinated from 9 months.

Chickenpox is a highly contagious disease caused by herpesvirus type 3 (Varicella zoster). The primary form is considered a childhood infection, which mainly affects children from 2 months to 15 years of age.

Chickenpox is highly contagious. Nine out of ten people who get the virus get chickenpox if they don't already have immunity. The transmission of the disease occurs by airborne droplets. Infection is possible within a radius of several meters. It is not excluded infection by contact-household way. A person becomes contagious 1-2 days before the rash appears. The danger of infecting others ends when all the bubbles are covered with a crust.

The first signs appear after the penetration of the pathogen into the body after 1-2 days:

deterioration in general well-being and weakness;
headaches and discomfort in the limbs;
increase in body temperature up to 39 degrees.

Then a rash appears on the skin, by which chickenpox is well recognizable. This causes skin lesions that turn into blisters and form crusts. Often the rash starts on the trunk and face, but it quickly spreads to other areas of the body. More and more bubbles appear, and the old ones dry up.

A red, intensely itchy rash is a typical symptom of chickenpox. Small spots turn into bubbles filled with a clear liquid. When the bubbles dry, crusts will remain. Young children develop fewer blisters than older people. In adults, the symptoms are more pronounced, the disease is more severe. In addition, complications occur more often than in children.

Usually the blisters dry up after a few days, the crusts fall off, and the skin heals completely. But heavy scratching or additional bacterial infection can cause scarring.

The main indications for the introduction of the chickenpox vaccine to children for prevention.

Vaccination is mandatory for people with severe chronic diseases, acute leukemia patients and patients taking medication. Among the indications are also preparation for transplant surgery and the recovery period after chemotherapy.

Immunization is possible only after consultation with a doctor (pediatrician or therapist) to exclude contraindications. At the RebenOK clinic, specific prevention measures are carried out using high-quality imported vaccines that have proven efficacy and safety.

If you choose to get your child or yourself vaccinated against chickenpox, keep in mind that the vaccination should not be given under certain circumstances.

Reasons for delaying or not getting the chickenpox vaccine may include:

Acute infections: If a person becomes ill, the varicella vaccination must be postponed until the vaccinated person is completely healthy. On the other hand, a simple runny nose or mild infections that do not require special medical attention are usually not an obstacle.
Previous reactions to vaccination: Fever up to 40 degrees, swelling and hyperemia of more than 8 cm in diameter at the injection site, convulsions or acute shortness of breath.
Allergy to ingredients: if intolerance to individual components of the drug used is known, vaccination should be refused or another vaccine should be selected.
Immunodeficiency: Congenital or acquired immunodeficiency usually cannot be vaccinated with a live vaccine. In addition, medications that regulate the function of the immune system, such as during treatment for cancer or tumors, are also contraindicated.

Live varicella vaccines containing a weakened but multiplying form of the virus should not be used in pregnant or breastfeeding women. Before vaccination, a consultation is held with the attending physician, who will tell about all the possible risks of vaccination.

If there are contraindications, the decision to use the vaccine is made by the doctor, taking into account the possible risks and expected benefits for each patient separately. Some diseases require timely administration of the vaccine, for example, 1-2 months before immunosuppressive therapy or 1 month before transplantation.

Patients who have identified signs of SARS, the vaccine is administered after recovery. In case of exacerbation of chronic diseases - 2-4 weeks after feeling better.

It is recommended to use with caution in chronic cardiac, vascular, renal and hepatic pathologies. Also, the issue of vaccination is resolved in case of hematological disorders, a decrease in the protective functions of the body and in case of allergic reactions to previous immunization. The general condition of the patient and the results of the physical examination are taken into account.

The varicella vaccine is a live vaccine that contains weakened pathogens that no longer cause disease. Live vaccines are in principle not allowed during pregnancy. The reason is that the mother theoretically transmits the virus to the child. Women who have received the varicella vaccine should avoid pregnancy for the next 4 weeks.

If the vaccination was done before or during pregnancy, then this is not a reason for the interruption. Judging by the known cases, the vaccine does not have a harmful effect on the child.

If there is contact with a person with chickenpox during pregnancy, pregnant women have ways to protect themselves. In this case, passive immunization with varicella-zoster antibodies is available. However, passive immunization should be carried out no later than 96 hours, that is, within 4 days after contact with the pathogen.

Although chickenpox is harmless in many patients, with any disease there is a risk of complications. It occurs in about 5% of all patients. In addition to bacterial skin infections, middle ear infections or bronchitis often occur. In some cases, severe chickenpox is accompanied by pneumonia, inflammation of the brain, or other diseases of the central nervous system. In some patients, the disease even leads to death.

Chickenpox infection is especially dangerous for newborns (mortality up to 20%), pregnant women, and immunocompromised people. But even healthy adults often suffer from complications. If chickenpox occurs during pregnancy, there is a risk of developing fetal varicella syndrome with malformations, skin changes, and neurological abnormalities.

Those who once had chickenpox may develop shingles because the varicella-zoster virus, although not active, remains in the body. It most often affects immunocompromised or elderly people. Shingles causes severe burning or stabbing pain in the trunk, neck, or shoulders. On one side of the body, several bubbles appear, arranged in the form of a ribbon. After 2-4 weeks, the disease disappears. In those vaccinated against chickenpox, shingles is less pronounced.

Chickenpox should be feared by groups of potential patients for whom this disease is deadly:

with oncological diseases;
in case of severe chronic diseases;
with acute leukemia and immunodeficiency.

For these categories of patients, vaccination is a mandatory measure. Vaccination is carried out after prior consultation with a doctor.

Vaccines available in the world contain a live version of the virus. Widely used attenuated (weakened) drugs, low reactogenic for all age groups. Vaccines induce specific cellular and humoral immunity, which suppresses the reproduction of the virus, preventing the development of the disease. Persistent post-vaccination immunity persists for many years.

The medical center "Child" uses effective and high-quality drugs that have passed the certification procedure and the full cycle of research:

Varilrix. Live attenuated vaccine (Varicella Zoster virus). The introduction of a single dose reduces the number of hospitalizations with chickenpox and outpatient visits by 81-87%.

We use high-quality products that meet all WHO requirements for the production of immunobiological medicines. We comply with sanitary requirements, storage conditions for vaccines and recommendations specified in the instructions for use.

The drugs used are well tolerated.

Vaccination schedule:

For emergency prophylaxis, 0.5 ml (1 dose) is used, which is administered once within 72-96 hours after contact. The level of protection in this case is 90%.

After the introduction of the drug from chickenpox, the maximum resistance to the pathogen is achieved after 6 weeks. The effectiveness of the vaccines used ranges from 95 to 98%. This indicator indicates a fairly good level of protection against type 3 herpes.

Vaccination against chickenpox is not a 100% guarantee - the risk of getting sick remains. Preventive measures allow you to carry chickenpox in adulthood in a milder form.

According to the developers of chickenpox vaccines, the effectiveness of the drugs lasts up to 30 years. It turns out that to protect against herpes, it is enough to get vaccinated 1-2 times.

As with any vaccination, the varicella vaccine can also cause local reactions at the injection site. Redness, swelling, and temporary pain are common side effects. Headache, fever, low energy, or gastrointestinal discomfort are also possible.

The chickenpox vaccine is well tolerated in both childhood and adulthood. On the 1st day after vaccination, mild local reactions may appear in the form of moderate edema, hyperemia and local pain. These symptoms do not require additional measures and go away on their own in a couple of days.

The cost of the chickenpox vaccine at the RebenOK clinic corresponds to the average prices in Moscow. The price can be specified on the website or by calling the medical center.

In our medical center, children are vaccinated against chickenpox under strict medical supervision. When carrying out preventive procedures, the doctor takes into account contraindications, the current state of the patient's body and the medical history. Be sure to draw up an individual vaccination plan for each patient.

At the RebenOK clinic, you can get vaccinated against chicken pox at the best prices in Moscow. We offer the highest quality and most effective drugs that are reliable, have a narrow list of contraindications and a minimum of adverse reactions.