Varicella-Zoster Infections

Abstract

Susan Shoshana Weisberg, MD, FCP, FAAP he varicella-zoster virus is a member of the herpesvirus family. Its nfamous relatives cause cold sores, genital herpes, mononucleosis, and ytomegalovirus, among others. Primary infection with varicella-zoster ccurs as chicken pox. Later reactivation of latent virus stored in sensory anglia results in herpes zoster, or shingles. This viral infection has been with us for a long time. Many other iseases, like plague or swine flu, have their day and burn out. This has ot been the case with chicken pox, which is thought to have followed us hroughout human history. Chicken pox was described by a Persian octor as early as the 9th century. By the 1500s, it had hit Europe, and the rst American case was reported in 1715. Before widespread immuniation against chicken pox, 9 of 10 American children had it by their 14th irthday. Only 1 in 50 chicken pox cases in America occur in adults, ost often in adults from isolated rural areas or in people with few or uch older siblings. Between the 1970s to 1990s, the trend in the United tates was for chicken pox to infect children at earlier and earlier ages. ome doctors believed this to be the result of increasing numbers of orking mothers using group daycare for younger children. By the early 990s, there were about 4 million cases of chicken pox per year in the nited States. We are not sure how chicken pox got its name. Although cows get owpox, and monkeys get monkeypox, chickens do not get chicken pox. umans are the only known species to suffer chicken pox. In 1730, a Dr. uller, from Britain, speculated that chicken pox pocks appear like pecks rom chicken beaks. A case might also be made that chicken pox esembles the skin of a plucked chicken. Another idea is that the Old nglish word “gicans,” meaning “itch,” is the root word that became the chicken” in pox. The most popular theory, however, is that the “chick” n “chicken pox” is the same “chick” as in the “chick pea” plant. Just for he record, chick peas are the world’s third largest seed crop, after beans nd peas. In Spain, chick peas are called “garbanzo,” and in India they are