Chickenpox Treatment At Home: What You Need to Know
Click here for a quick summary of basic information about chickenpox / Varicella-Zoster.
Varicella, also known varicella-zoster or chicken pox, is normally a mild disease, but it can cause severe after-effects in certain situations. This author was one of the children, back in the 1980s, who developed a severe, visceral form of chicken pox that impacted my heart after the infection ended. In the 1980s, there was no vaccine for chicken pox and every few years a wave of the infection spread through town. I was one of two kids, ages 6-7 years old who developed heart problems that year as a result of the chicken pox infection.
The heart problems that I developed involved sudden, fast heart beat (over 220 beats per minute at times) and then my heart would stop for 10-20 seconds and I would briefly black-out before my heart would start beating again. The heart problem lasted for about a year and then it slowly began to go away on its own. I wore a heart monitor for a while which made me super-popular with my classmates, but I never received any kind of treatment from conventional medicine doctors because none of them knew what to do. The health issue resolved on its own.
In comparison with other rash-and-fever diseases like measles, scarlet fever, or smallpox, chicken pox doesn’t usually cause an epidemic per se. Nonetheless, chicken pox is highly contagious with an incubation period of between 4 to 7 days.
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Shingles / Herpes Zoster
Decades after the initial chickenpox infection occurs, a herpes-zoster / shingles rash can develop as a result of the reactivation of latent infection with the herpes zoster virus. About 1 in 5 adults who had chickenpox as children develop shingles. Immune-suppression is a common reason why adults develop shingles. Children who develop a chickenpox infection before 1 year of age are most likely to develop shingles after age 60.After the initial chickenpox infection, the virus becomes latent or dormant and colonizes the dorsal root and cranial nerve ganglia. This is similar to other herpes viruses which also establish latency in the body. Several studies have shown that intravenous administration of vitamin C can reduce shingles pain quickly. High dose, intravenous vitamin C (10,000-18,000 mg), like chlorine dioxide solution and miracle mineral solution, releases superoxide anions that easily kill infection throughout the body. These superoxide anions are identical to the superoxide anions released by white blood cells at the first sign of infection.
Varicella zoster can, in some cases, harm the arteries in the neck and head, causing a stroke.
Patients with shingles may be able to spread chickenpox to unvaccinated people who are not immune via contact with the shingles blisters.
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Post-Herpetic Neuralgia
Post-herpetic neuralgia is a type of nerve pain that occurs as a result of damage to the peripheral nerve caused by a reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus. It occurs as a result of shingles / herpes-zoster).Post-herpetic neuralgia is diagnosed if pain lasts for longer than 90 days after shingles infection. This pain is described in the following way:
- Burning pain
- Severe shooting / electric-pain
- Sensitivity to touch that wouldn’t usually cause pain
- Abnormal sensations
- Itching
Ramsay Hunt Syndrome Type 2
Ramsay Hunt syndrome type 2, also known simply as Ramsay Hunt syndrome (RHS) or Herpes Zoster Oticus is the inflammation of the geniculate ganglion of the facial nerve that occurs as a result of varicella zoster virus infection. Ramsay Hunt syndrome involves the following symptoms:- Ipsilateral facial paralysis
- Earache
- Vesicles located close to the ear or the auditory canal
- Hearing loss
- Tinnitus
- Vertigo / Dizziness
Ramsay Hunt syndrome shares some similarities with Bell’s Palsy.
Chickenpox At-Home Treatment
Chickenpox treatment in conventional medicine aims to relieve symptoms. Doctors don’t have a lot to offer patients with chicken pox at home. Because it is a contagious disease, patients should stay home during the infectious period. Outside of conventional medicine, there are at-home treatments for chickenpox that include:- Sarracenia purpurea as an herbal remedy for chickenpox
- Homeopathic treatment for chickenpox
- Reactive oxygen species medicines for chickenpox
Clip Fingernails / Wear Gloves
In both children and adults, it can be useful to clip the fingernails short and perhaps wear gloves to prevent scratching that can lead to a secondary infection.
Do NOT Administer NSAIDs / Choose Paracetamol or Acetaminophen Instead
Administering NSAIDs including (but not limited to) ibuprofen, diclofenac, and naproxen-sodium significantly increase the risk of severe skin infections such as flesh-eating bacterial disease / gangrene. For the symptomatic relief of fevers or pain during a chickenpox infection, consider taking paracetamol or acetaminophen instead with doses of N-Acetyl-Cysteine / NAC to reduce acetaminophen damage to the liver.
Immunoglobulin Therapy for Patients with Poor Immunity
If the patient goes to a doctor and they have an increased risk of developing chickenpox complications, the doctor may give varicella-zoster immunoglobulin treatment that contains antibodies to help prevent the disease or reduce symptoms.
Skin Itching Treatment
The problem of itchy skin should not be ignored. Secondary bacterial infection due to chickenpox can develop into gangrene / flesh-eating bacterial disease in some cases. Clip fingernails and put gloves on children to prevent itching that can lead to secondary infection.Calamine lotion is often administered to reduce itching due to chickenpox. Spray the skin daily with Chlorine Dioxide Solution (CDS) / Miracle Mineral Supplement (MMS) or give a warm bath daily or twice daily with CDS / MMS. Click here to read more about the CDS / MMS bath protocol to prevent skin infection due to chickenpox.
Antiviral Therapy
While doctors may prescribe an antiviral like acyclovir or valacyclovir for chickenpox, be aware that this drug and related antiviral drugs can cause serious side effects, some of them long-term. Also, acyclovir may reduce symptoms of chickenpox, but it doesn’t reduce the risk of complications and because of the serious side effects that it can cause, it isn’t worth the risks and should NOT be administered to people with normal immune function.Instead of working with acyclovir or valacyclovir, patients can instead administer Sarracenia purpurea as an herbal remedy for chickenpox or use Chlorine Dioxide Solution (CDS) / Miracle Mineral Supplement (MMS) for chickenpox as a safe alternative that won’t cause serious side-effects. CDS / MMS is a powerful antiviral that can be administered to babies, children, adults, and even pregnant women.
Chickenpox Complications: Acute Liver Failure Due to Chicken Pox
One of the complications of chickenpox that have been reported and studied is acute liver failure. This is a rare problem that can be fatal if it is not properly treated. It often occurs in children with immune system impairment. In cases where the treatment provider suspects liver failure due to chicken pox, antiviral therapy should be administered. Chlorine Dioxide Solution (CDS), also known as Miracle Mineral Supplement (MMS), is a powerful antiviral that can be administered at the first sign of fever due to chicken pox to prevent acute liver failure.Visceral Disseminated Chickenpox Infection
Visceral disseminated chickenpox usually impacts patients with poor immunity. Existing diabetes mellitus is a risk factor that has been correlated with visceral disseminated chickenpox infection. Most cases of disseminated chickenpox infection involve patients who have poorly controlled blood sugar levels.Symptoms of Visceral Disseminated Chickenpox Infection
- Abdominal pain / Acute abdomen
- Skin rash
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Resources:
• Brewer, E. C. and Hunter, L. (2018). Acute Liver Failure due to Disseminated Varicella Zoster Infection. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6180957/
• Dits, H. et al. (1998). Varicella-zoster virus infection associated with acute liver failure. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9675478/
• Mizu, D. et al. (2022). Visceral disseminated varicella zoster infection: a rare cause of acute abdomen in a patient with well-controlled diabetes mellitus–a case report. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8895882/
• Drury, W. V. (1877). Eruptive Fevers: A History of Medicine, Scarlet Fever, Measles, Small-Pox, and Treatments in the 20th Century. Adansonia Publishing
• Ayoade, F. and Kumar, S. (2022). Varicella-Zoster Virus (Chickenpox). Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK448191/
• Byun, S. H. and Jeon, Y. (2011). Administration of Vitamin C in a Patient with Herpes Zoster - A case report. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3111558/
• Liu, Y. et al. (2020). Intravenous Administration of Vitamin C in the Treatment of Herpes Zoster-Associated Pain: Two Case Reports and Literature Review. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3111558/
• Biancatelli, R. M. L. C., Berrill, M., Marik, P. E. (2019). The antiviral properties of vitamin C. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14787210.2020.1706483
• Schencking, M. et al. (2012). Intravenous Vitamnin C in the treatment of shingles: Results of a multicenter prospective cohort study. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3560828/
• Suaerbrei, A. (2016). Varicella-zoster virus infections – antiviral therapy and diagnosis. Retrieved September 10, 2024 from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6301744/
