Cases of chickenpox have continued to be registered in hospitals in the country of late. Edward Kenfack, a Yaounde inhabitant is sick. He has rashes all over the body and is in serious pain. From a close look, one can easily detect that he is suffering from chickenpox.

He said he has kept away from work for three weeks due to the problem. Chickenpox is known to be common in children. But today, many adults are being affected by the disease.

Dr. Mboua Bitoungui Junior, a dermatologist with the Yaounde Central Hospital said there were cases of chickenpox in both adults and children in the hospital. "Each time there is an outbreak of chickenpox in children, adults are also affected,' he said. He explained that the main period for the epidemic is during school reopening and holidays. The disease affects adults who have never had it and pregnant women because pregnancy reduces immunity, he pointed out.

Children are said to tolerate the symptoms of chickenpox better than adults. Also with adults, the rashes spread all over the body unlike in children. They are more painful and cause itches, pain and fever. Dr. Mboua said in AIDS patients, the rashes can occur in the mouth, lungs and other internal organs. He said treatment for chickenpox lasts about three weeks.

"The treatment is mostly symptomatic, but in AIDS patients, we have to add a specific treatment," Dr Mboua said. Chickenpox, according to him, is a viral disease and cannot be treated. Some ways of preventing it include keeping children away from schools with outbreaks, isolation of adult patients and provision of symptomatic treatment.

Chickenpox (varicella) is a common illness that causes itchy rashes and red spots or blisters (pox) all over the body. It is most common in children, but most people will get chickenpox at some point in their lives if they have not received the chickenpox vaccine.