Chickenpox in a Collapsed Society

While most children in the US today have been vaccinated against chickenpox,
it is another childhood disease likely to make a strong comeback in a collapsed
society.  However, today’s young adults
who will be tomorrow’s parents of young chickenpox patients won’t have the
experience and won’t know how to recognize it or manage it in their
children.  So it’s an important topic to
cover here.

I have to laugh at the description in Where There Is No Doctor, noting that chickenpox is a “mild virus
infection.”[1]  Maybe I’d say it is a minor viral infection.  As a
child observing my 8^th birthday in bed with chickenpox on a hot day
in July with no AC, it was anything but mild. 
I was hot, itchy, and miserable.

Signs and Symptoms

Spread through respiratory droplets in the air (i.e., masks
would effectively work to slow the spread of this particular disease), chickenpox
is highly contagious among the unvaccinated and unexposed.  It begins as a flu-like illness, including a
runny nose, watery eyes, occasional sore throat, loss of appetite, and
decreased energy.  A low-grade fever is
followed by the development of the classic rash which appears as many small, red,
itchy spots about 2-3 weeks after the patient is exposed to another person who
has the disease.  These spots then
develop into little pimples or pus-filled blisters which subsequently rupture
and then scab over.  They usually begin
on the trunk of the body and then appear on the face, arms, and legs.  The spots, blisters, and scabs may all be
present at the same time.  The disease
usually runs its course within a week but may last as long as three weeks.  Once all the spots have scabbed over, the
patient is no longer contagious.[2]

In a world where the advanced medical care is difficult to
obtain and one in which bioterrorism threatens, it will be critical to be able
to distinguish between chickenpox and smallpox. 
From The Ship’s Medicine Chest and
Medical Aid at Sea:

“Lesions of chickenpox typically
appear in crops.  Lesions of different
ages are seen at the same time in a given area of the body surface.  This
helps to distinguish chickenpox from smallpox.  In smallpox, the lesions in a given area of
the body surface are of the same age and stage of development.  They usually begin and are most extensive on
the face and/or extremities.”[3]

Treatment

• Bathe the patient daily in cool or warm water (references
  are at odds on the temperature) and soap. 
   
• To calm itching, apply poultices using the cooled water from boiled and strained
  oatmeal.   
• Cut the fingernails very short
  (The patient will be very itchy and will likely scratch the blisters at some
  point.  Cutting the fingernails will
  reduce the chances for infection and scarring.) 
   
• If the scabs become infected, keep them clean.   
• Apply hot, wet compresses to them and use
  antibiotic ointment.   
• Try to prevent the
  patient from scratching.
• Tylenol may be
  administered for pain relief.[4]
• Loratidine or Benadryl may reduce
  itching.   
• Baking soda pastes can also
  provide some relief.[5]

Complications

Some patients develop a lung infection with shortness of
breath and cough.  It can be fatal.
Treatment at a hospital should be sought if possible.[6] 

Herbs that have historically been used to treat chickenpox:

• Black currant (Ribes nigrum)[7]
• Dyer’s woad (isatis)[8]
• Elder (Sambucus nigra) [9]
• Ginger[10]
• Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)[11]
• Japanese knotweed (Polygonum cuspidatum)[12]
• Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis)[13]
• Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra)[14]

The Shingles relief cream published on this site last year can
also be used with chickenpox sores.

Links to related
posts:

Japanese honeysuckle

Lemon balm

Lemon Balm Shingles Relief Cream

Licorice

Shingles