Chicken pox is a viral infection that causes a blister-like rash on the surface of the skin and mucous membranes. Chicken pox blisters usually appear first on the trunk and face, then spread to almost everywhere else on the body, including the scalp and penis, and inside the mouth, nose, ears, and vagina.
Some persons have only a few blisters, although others have several hundred.
It is these blisters that give chicken pox its name. Rather, the red spots were once thought to look like chick peas on the skin. Chicken pox got its name from cicer , which is the Latin word for chick peas. Some children have a fever, abdominal pain, or a vague sick feeling along with their skin blisters. Younger children often have milder symptoms and fewer blisters than older children or adults.