At least one case of chicken pox has been confirmed in Winnetka schools, according to a March 19 letter from the Cook County Department of Public Health, which was provided by a spokeswoman for Winnetka School District 36.
“A person at Crow Island School in Winnetka, Illinois has recently been diagnosed with chickenpox,” the Department of Public Health letter said.
“Most children are expected to be protected against varicella infections (like chickenpox) by vaccination or previous disease.
“However, susceptible children exposed to someone with chickenpox could begin to have symptoms within the next two
weeks.”
The letter advised parents to watch their children for symptoms of the highly contagious disease.
No cases of chicken pox have been confirmed in neighboring Wilmette Public Schools District 39 and Glencoe School District 35, according to spokespeople there. The Winnetka District 36 spokeswoman said no classes have been closed due to the confirmed case.
“I would say that since the introduction of varicella vaccine in 1995, and since mandatory varicella vaccination in Illinois schools since 2002, there was a more than 95% decline in varicella infections,” said Jonathan Pinsky, M.D., an infectious disease specialist at Endeavor Health, which has hospitals in Glenview, Highland Park, Skokie, Evanston and elsewhere in the Chicago area.
“While Illinois schools still require varicella, it is possible that increased vaccine hesitancy has led to some parents requesting exemptions.”
In a similar vein, Jennifer Grant, M.D., also an infectious disease specialist at Endeavor Health, said, “My general sense is that we have not seen a huge uptick yet (in chicken pox cases). Vaccine coverage has been slowly declining over time per IDPH (Illinois Department of Public Health) so there is definitely a chance we will start to see more.”
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control about two months ago revised downward its recommendations for childhood vaccinations. Previously, it recommended that children be vaccinated against 17 illnesses, but now recommends only 10 vaccinations, according to previous reporting. The varicella vaccine is still among the 10, however.
However, the federal move will have “no bearing” on Illinois’ vaccine recommendations, said the director of the Illinois Department of Public Health in early January. Illinois made no changes to its vaccine recommendations.
Chicken pox typically shows up as a rash and blisters 10 to 21 days after exposure, according to information from the American Academy of Pediatrics, provided in an article by Capt. Monisha Malek, M.D. and Lt. Col. Megan Donahue, M.D.
While symptoms of chickenpox usually are mild, the infection can cause serious problems, especially for pregnant people, young children and people with conditions that affect their immune system, they wrote.
Serious cases can cause bacterial infection of the blisters that spreads to the bloodstream, lung infection (pneumonia) and infection in the brain (encephalitis).
