A breakout in chickenpox is threatening HCM City and Hanoi.

The number of infected children entering HCM City’s Children’s Hospital 1 so far this month had increased by 42 percent over the same period last month, the hospital’s Dr Nguyen Thi Bich Lien said.

Many of the children were hospitalised after Tet, she said, some of whom had lung and skin side-effects due to a delay in receiving treatment.

In Hanoi, there were five serious cases of chickenpox in February, the capital’s Central Paediatrics Hospital’s infection department head Pham Nhat An said.

“We cannot determine the real number of infected children because with light cases children get treatment at home. Parents only send their children to hospital when the situation is really bad,” An said.

Chickenpox often increases from February to June, with a peak in March, he said.

Children’s Hospital 1 infection-nerve department head Truong Huu Khanh said the first symptom of chickenpox was light fever, with a red rash appearing on face after several days.
Vaccination was the only effective way to prevent the disease, he said. Children over one year old could be vaccinated. Children over 13 years old received a second injection after six weeks./.