Chicken pox infects students

Dorm residents are itching for relief A rash of chicken pox cases has students in University residences scratching their heads -- and just about everything else. About six students have reported symptoms of infection by the varicella virus over the past two weeks, according to Residential Living Director Gigi Simeone. Well-known symptoms of chicken pox include itchy blisters all over the body. Although the illness is highly contagious before the blisters burst, scab and heal, chicken pox does not usually pose permanent health risks. Simeone said Residential Living takes recommendations from Student Health Services on how to proceed in cases like these. And Student Health Director MarJeanne Collins said the six cases on campus -- affecting residents of the Quadrangle and high rises -- do not appear to be related. "[It] seems like they had not been in contact," she said, adding that she has seen only one "complicated" case of chicken pox during her career. Severe complications can include pneumonia and encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain. But most of the time the symptoms are just irritating. "Itching is probably what drives people crazy," Collins said. To relieve the discomfort, she suggests calamine lotion and Aveeno or oatmeal baths. But researchers have now formulated a more permanent method of relief -- a chicken pox vaccine. The vaccine, which became available this past summer, has been recommended for children over the age of 18 months, Collins said. Young adults and college students receive two doses of the vaccine, at a total cost of about $80. Sometimes insurance companies will cover this fee, she added. But between 71 and 90 percent of adults are immune to varicella infection, regardless of whether they suffered through a bout of chicken pox in childhood, Collins said. For this reason, students looking to save money can have their blood tested for varicella antibodies for approximately $40. Of course, Collins said, if the test comes out negative, getting the vaccine at an additional charge would still be an option. Student Health recommends that incoming freshmen who have not had chicken pox get the vaccination before matriculating at the University, Collins said. This recommendation could become a requirement in the years to come, she added, "because as adults, [students] may be around children" who have been exposed to chicken pox. Vaccinations would prevent them from getting sick. In addition, shingles -- an outbreak of painful blisters on the body that results from a reactivation of the varicella virus -- can affect adults so severely that they may require hospitalization. Daily Pennsylvanian reporter Jamie Phares contributed to this story.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.