Call the doctor if your child develops a fever of 103 degrees F, if blisters are inflamed, painfully swollen, or filled with pus, or if the child is getting no relief from itching. Most children return to normal in about 2-3 weeks. Children with weak immune systems, like those with the HIV virus or cancer, are susceptible to complications such as more serious secondary skin infections or, in rare cases, infections of the lung or central nervous system. Getting vaccinated against chicken pox. The chicken pox vaccine is administered by an injection under the skin of the thigh or shoulder.
Adverse reactions are usually mild and infrequent.
Only about 20 percent of those who get immunized report pain and redness at the site of injection. One injection of the vaccine is recommended for children age 1 to 12. Two injections, a month apart, are recommended for adolescents 13 and up. Currently, boosters are not recommended. One of the primary concerns about the vaccine is that parents may be lulled into a false sense of security that their child is immune after receiving the vaccine.