A striking number of children have recently been getting chickenpox, says research institute level† In the first months of this year, four to five times as many children between the ages of zero and four developed this childhood disease. The disease is twice as common among children aged five to 15 years as a year ago, according to GP data.
There may be a “catch-up effect” after the corona years, Nivel thinks. In 2020 and 2021, many infectious diseases could hardly spread. The schools were closed and people had to keep their distance from each other. Now that the rules have been relaxed, those diseases are more easily transmitted.
About 150 children are diagnosed with chickenpox per 100,000 inhabitants, according to data from hundreds of general practices. But many parents let their children get sick without the help of a doctor.
Itchy bumps
Chickenpox is caused by a virus. In general, children mainly suffer from itchy bumps, but very occasionally serious complications occur. Adults who still get chickenpox are at greater risk for additional problems.
Pediatricians told . on Wednesday de Volkskrant that they have recently also seen more children infected with a so-called group A streptococcal bacteria. Chickenpox can increase the risk of such an infection. This type of bacteria is usually relatively harmless, but in rare cases infection can lead to very serious illness.
The number of reports about the RS virus has also been increasing for a few weeks. This revival is also related to the relaxation of the corona measures. This epidemic has remained dormant since the peak in the summer of 2021, RIVM virologist Adam Meijer recently told NU.nl.