El Paso Chickenpox Treatment for Children & Adults
Our walk-in clinic in El Paso offers chickenpox treatment and vaccinations for children and adults. Whether your child is undergoing an itchy bout of chickenpox or you never got it in your youth, our urgent care services can help. As always, we’re available on a walk-in basis so you can visit us at your convenience.
Call our El Paso urgent care clinic today at 915-225-4470 or online!
What is Chickenpox?
Chickenpox is an infamous disease that has only recently been tamed by vaccines in the last few decades. Despite this, thousands of children and adults still contract chickenpox every year.
Chickenpox is highly contagious, often characterized by a blister-like rash. It is caused by the varicella-zoster virus (VZV). This virus can cause a variety of issues in addition to rashes and also appear later in life as shingles.
Once responsible for some 4 million cases yearly, chickenpox now infects much fewer children and adults thanks to the varicella vaccine. Today, it is recommended by El Paso urgent care officials that children receive the chickenpox vaccine when they are between 12-15 months old and 4-6 years old.
Signs, Symptoms & Treatment options
The most common side of chickenpox is rashes. The rashes typically begin on areas like the face, chest, and back before spreading across other parts of the body. Rashes can develop into fluid-filled blisters before developing into visible scabbing. However, the rashes are normally proceeded by a sore throat, fever, stomachache, or other symptoms.
Our urgent care clinic in El Paso recommends looking for rashes that can appear anywhere from 10 to 21 days after exposure. Some other symptoms of the virus include the following:
- Loss of appetite
- General malaise or tiredness
- Fever
Headaches
Chickenpox can spread from person to person through the following mediums:
- Exposure to mucus
- Exposure to saliva
- Exposure to fluid from blisters
Contact with droplets in the air from sneezing or coughing
There is no treatment for chickenpox besides getting the vaccine as a prevention measure. However, there are some remedies to ease symptoms like calamine lotion for itching and paracetamol for fever.
Our qualified urgent care team can help you find the best ways to ease your symptoms as chickenpox runs its course.
Call our walk-in clinic in El Paso at 915-225-4470 to learn more!
Childhood Chickenpox
Chickenpox in children is much more likely to develop than in adults but is usually less serious than an adult infection. Given how contagious the virus is, children with chickenpox should stay home and rest until they have no more rashes and their blisters have dried up.
Children who are receiving immune system-suppressing medicines may be at greater risk of developing complications from chickenpox. It’s important that parents of these children are particularly careful with exposure.
Once children have chickenpox, it is believed that they no longer need the vaccine because lifelong protection has been developed. Speak with our staff to learn more about these pediatric urgent care services in El Paso.
Adult Chickenpox
Adult chickenpox is much rarer than chickenpox in children. It can also become more severe later in life. Anywhere from one to three weeks after exposure, flu-like symptoms will begin to develop. Soon after those symptoms develop, red spots will appear on the chest and face before spreading everywhere.
After red spots develop, chickenpox will develop nearly identically in adults and children. Spots will stop appearing by the 7th day and blisters should scab over after around 2 weeks.
Many adults don’t need to worry about contracting chickenpox because they received the vaccine as a child or caught chickenpox as a child. If you have not done either, then you may be at risk of chickenpox if you come into contact with an infected person or something they recently touched.
Contact Paseo Nuevo to learn more about our El Paso urgent care services.
Risks and Complications Associated with Chickenpox in Adults
Although most adults will still not develop any serious complications from chickenpox, some demographics are at a higher level of risk than others.
You may have a higher risk of complications if you are:
- A person with an impaired or suppressed immune system
- A pregnant person who hasn’t had chickenpox
- A person who is taking steroid medications
Below are some of the potential complications from chickenpox for adults:
- Toxic shock syndrome
- Dehydration
- Sepsis
- Bleeding issues
- Pneumonia
- Encephalitis
- Bacterial infections
Treat Your Chickenpox at Our El Paso Urgent Care!
Whether you or your child has a case of chickenpox, our team of urgent care professionals can help. To get started, simply contact our El Paso walk-in clinic through our site or give us a call at 915-225-4470 or online!
