Warning over chicken pox outbreaks at nurseries

OUTBREAKS of chicken pox are being reported by nursery staff across Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan, health chiefs have confirmed.

Public Health Wales has urged parents to keep their sons and daughters away from other children if they suspect they have the illness.

Chicken pox, which is very common in children, causes red raised spots to develop on the face or chest before spreading to other parts of the body.

Very itchy, fluid-filled blisters then develop on top of the spots.

The condition is contagious until all the spots have blistered and scabbed over, which usually happens about five or six days after the rash first appeared.

A Public Health Wales spokesman said: “Public Health Wales is aware of chicken pox cases in nurseries around the South Wales area, which we would expect at this time of year.

“If your child has chicken pox, keep them away from nursery or school, and avoid contact with people who have not had chicken pox until all spots have crusted over.

Latest figures for Wales show there were 337 admissions to hospital in 2015-16 with a primary diagnosis of chicken pox – the highest in 11 years.

Dr Iolo Doull, a spokesperson for the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, and a consultant paediatrician, Children’s Hospital for Wales, said: “Chicken pox is a potentially serious disease, particularly for those whose immune system is compromised.