Background and Purpose—The purpose of this study was to determine whether infection with varicella is causal for arterial ischemic stroke (AIS) in children. Methods—First, a prospective cohort study was conducted in young children (aged 6 months to 10 years) with AIS at 2 institutions (cohort study). The presence of varicella infection ,12 months before AIS was determined and compared with the ...

Three cases of unilateral epiphora following an attack of chickenpox were studied. Each patient was a child who was in good health prior to the onset of the attack. During the illness each had ocular symptoms suggesting local infection from the virus. A dacryocystogram revealed obstruction of the common canaliculus in each case caused by a fibrotic scar. All cases responded to appropriate surgi...

BACKGROUND Two-dose varicella vaccination is recommended for optimal control of varicella in populations with high (>90%) 1-dose coverage. Optimal timing of the second dose may depend on whether breakthrough varicella results from primary vaccine failure (no protective immunity after vaccination) or secondary vaccine failure (waning protective immunity). METHODS Published literature (1995 to ...

This study was undertaken to audit staff varicella policy for UK paediatric centres, and to estimate the cost-effectiveness of implementing a staff varicella vaccine policy. A telephone survey of 22 hospitals was performed to determine the policy regarding varicella immune status among healthcare workers (HCWs). All hospitals surveyed except one recorded immune status of informed HCWs, and had ...

Primary varicella infection (chickenpox) is common in the UK with over threequarters of parents reporting a history of chickenpox in their children by 5 years of age. Following primary infection, the varicella zoster virus (VZV) remains dormant in the dorsal root ganglia and reactivates in later life following a decline in cell-mediated immunity to cause herpes zoster or shingles (HZ). Although...

BACKGROUND After licensing of a varicella vaccine in Canada in 1998, Health Canada commissioned a study to evaluate options for a vaccination program. The evaluation of a program of vaccination of 12-month-old children, with and without a catch-up program for susceptible 12-year-olds, is presented here. METHODS An economic model was developed simulating the expected experience, with and witho...

Before availability of varicella vaccine in the United States, an estimated 4 million varicella cases, 11,000-13,500 varicella-related hospitalizations, and 100-150 varicella-related deaths occurred annually. The varicella vaccination program was implemented in the United States in 1996 as a 1-dose routine childhood program. Based on data from two varicella active surveillance sites, the varice...

INTRODUCTION Varicella in previously immunized individuals, known as "breakthrough varicella". While the majority of breakthrough cases are mild, some may be severe, requiring hospitalization in previously healthy children or children with an underlying condition. METHODS This report, as a part of the prospective national pediatric varicella hospitalizations study (including 29 centers, repre...

Surveillance systems for varicella in Europe are highly heterogeneous or completely absent. We estimated the varicella incidence based on seroprevalence data, as these data are largely available and not biased by under-reporting or underascertainment. We conducted a systematic literature search for varicella serological data in Europe prior to introduction of universal varicella immunization. A...

Monkeypox (Mpox) resurfaced in January 2022 as a rare zoonotic disease that spreads to many countries. Though the virus is not dangerous COVID-19, it has still caused fatalities worldwide. The Mpox when people are close contact with infected individuals. Among symptoms, also causes skin rashes, and medical imaging can be used diagnose successfully. However, other diseases such smallpox, chicken...