It is usually a mild rash illness of children but recently has been shown to cause serious health problems during pregnancy. Anyone can get fifth disease, but it occurs most often in elementary school-age children. The virus is spread by contact with airborne droplets produced by infected people coughing and sneezing. One to two weeks after infection, some children will have a low-grade fever and will feel tired. The rash may then spread to the rest of the body and tends to come and go.
Sunlight can make the rash worse.
Some children may have only vague signs of illness or no symptoms at all. Adults with fifth disease may not have a rash but arthritis may develop. People with fifth disease can spread the illness during the week before the rash appears. By the time the rash is seen, the virus can no longer be spread to others. The disease is usually diagnosed by the presence of the rash.