If you have an adolescent child, then you’re probably familiar with the “kissing disease.” Mononucleosis, known by the shorter version, “mono” to which it will be referred to as now, has troubled preteens and teens alike for years. While adults can still contract the disease, it is very rare because most adults are immune. Mono is a viral infection that can completely drain your child of energy. It also can cause swelling of the glands and tonsils, a sore throat, swollen sinuses and more.

Mono is caused by the “Epstein-Barr” virus, commonly referred to as EBV. It is easily transmitted through saliva, thus gaining the “kissing disease” designation. In fact, mono can even be spread through tears. Another form of transportation for the mono virus is the mucus of both the nose and throat and therefore sneezes and coughs. The best way to avoid transmitting mono to others is to avoid all forms of kissing and sharing drinks, toothbrushes or eating utensils.

An interesting fact is that if you have had mono, you will retain the virus forever. It will not cause any symptoms, however it will become active from time to time and it’s during this time it can be spread to others.

There are many different options to treat chickenpox and most are centered on stopping the itchy feelings that surround every single mancule (red spot). Most doctors will usually just offer simple home remedies for treatment because the infection will usually end on its own through defeat by your child’s own antibodies. However, if the disease becomes serious enough, your child can receive a shot of chickenpox antibodies that will speed the defeat of the virus by aiding your child’s own natural antibodies. Doctors will sometimes also give the chickenpox vaccine to a child that has been recently infected as it is shown to help speed defeat of the virus as well.

There are many different home remedies for the treatment of chickenpox. However, you must remember to also take care of the accompanying fever. This can be done with things like children’s Motrin or children’s Tylenol. To reduce the suffering from itching, oatmeal baths are said to be very effective. It may seem like a sloppy or disgusting process but it can calm the itching for a few hours. If there are just a few itching spots, calamine lotion is very effective at stopping the itch, but leaves an unsightly residue when it dries and may be uncomfortable for little children.

It usually takes just two weeks, once your child has contracted the virus, for it to fully incubate and being causing the mancules (red spots) but sometimes it can take the virus up to three weeks to make an appearance. The most obvious sign of infections are the mancules that develop all over the body. Other signs of infection include a fever and lack of energy. The fever usually occurs about 24 to 48 hours before the actual mancules appear. The mancules vary in their severity from child to child and with the severity of the virus they contracted.

Mancules take about 48 hours to complete all their “stages of life.” When they first appear, they are very red and look like tiny blisters. Next, these little blisters will burst and after some time, dry out. The mancule will then crust over and will become very itchy. Soon after this stage, the red spot will heal and disappear. It takes about a week for new mancules to stop occurring but can take up to ten days depending on the severity. After new mancules have stopped appearing, it’s safe to send your child back to school or day care.

Many other infections can produce similar symptoms, so it’s important to go to a doctor to have your child properly diagnosed.

A doctor can determine if your child is suffering from chickenpox with a simple physical examination. However, they may not even require this and will have your child remain at home to avoid spreading the infection to others. If they still require seeing your child, be sure to ask for any special precautions to take to avoid spreading the infection, like being directed to an examination room immediately upon arrival to avoid the waiting room.

The most obvious sign of being infected with chickenpox are the numerous red spots that cover the entire body. This can be enough information for your doctor to diagnose your child over the phone, but many other infections can cause similar red spots so the doctor may still want to see your child depending on your explanation of the symptoms.

Teenagers should see the doctor for a physical examination if they are showing symptoms of chickenpox. This could be the sign of a more serious infection, and if it isn’t, chickenpox in older children is more severe and the doctor may want to offer different treatment options that those commonly used. Pregnant women should see a doctor immediately because chickenpox can cause many birth defects like eye problems and the loss of limbs.

Chickenpox is caused by a type of herpes virus, scientifically called the varicella-zoster. Contracting chickenpox occurs almost exactly the same way contracting a common cold does. Your child will contract the disease from sneezes, coughs or sharing drinks and foods. The virus likes to enter the respiratory system and incubate there. Other ways to contract the virus include skin to skin contact with open sores and not washing hands if your child has somehow picked the virus up on them as it can then enter the respiratory system or into their mouth when your child touches their face. It may be almost impossible to tell when someone who carries the virus is contagious, as the carrier is most contagious 48 to 72 hours before any signs of the trademark chickenpox red spots appear. These red spots are called macules and after they have burst and crusted over, your child can usually return to daycare or school.

If you wish to protect your child from the disease, the best solution would be to receive the chickenpox vaccine, as it is the only sure fire way to prevent a severe infection. There is no way to completely protect your child from getting chickenpox at school just like there is no way to protect them from getting a common cold in the same situation.

Chickenpox is a virus, called the herpes zoster. It has been found that 9 out of every 10 people in the world will contract the virus at one point in their lives. In the Western world, this happens mainly during childhood, where the effects of the virus are much less severe. However, in other parts of the world, it is usually adults that become infected. There is a vaccine available, but not every chooses to make use of it.

The seriousness of the disease varies greatly from person to person. In fact, if you contract chickenpox from another person, it’s most likely that your case will be a little bit more severe than theirs. However, the most serious cases occur in adults, and are due to the fact that many adults develop pneumonia with their herpes zoster. A small percentage of those do develop pneumonia end up in the hospital. Generally, the only complications children develop come from bacteria infections from picking at the skin blisters.

If your child has had the chickenpox vaccine or has had even the mildest case of the infection, they are now essentially immune. The virus sometimes breaks through the built up antibodies and causes a very small “breakout infection,” but these infections are generally very mild. If this happens to an adult, however, the herpes zoster virus can cause the very painful disease shingles.