TABLE 1:
Course of chickenpox in otherwise healthy children aged younger than 20 years according to immunization status and treatment with acyclovir
| Placebo group in acyclovir trials* | Treated group in acyclovir trials† | Prelicensure VZV vaccine studies (5,6)‡ | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 to 12 years (4) | 13 to 18 years (3) | 2 to 12 years (4) | 13 to 18 years (3) | 1 to 19 years (5) | |
| Total number of cases | 357 | 31 | 367 | 31 | 162 |
| Median number of spots | 347 | >500 | 294 | >500 | 32 to 40 |
| Percentage with more than 500 spots | 38.4 | 71 | 21.3 | 58 | 1.7 |
| Oral temp >37.8°C | |||||
| Rash day 1 | 52% | 48% | 46% | 48% | 28% |
| Rash day 3 | 25% | 37% | 10% | 4% | Not stated |
| Any complication | 7 (2%) | 2 (6.4%) | 4 (1%) | 0 | 0 |
| Bacterial skin infection | 6 | 2 | 4 | ||
| Concomitant urinary tract infections | 3 | 0 | 2 | ||
| Cerebellar ataxia | 1 | 0 | |||
| Intervention benefit | |||||
| Illness duration | About one day less | About one day less (6) | |||
| Clinical severity | 15% to 30% reduction | 80% to 90% reduction | |||
*
Nothing other than symptomatic therapy;
†
Oral acyclovir 24 h or less after rash onset;
‡
Varicella zoster virus (VZV) vaccine more than 42 days preillness onset; no acyclovir