A new vaccine, directed against both chicken pox, measles, rubella and mumps, should very shortly receive an authorization on the market. This combination vaccine relaunch the debate on the relevance of routine vaccination of children against chickenpox, as is done in the U.S. since 1995. Unusually frequent and very positive graveL’experience americaineFaut he systematically vaccinate infants against chickenpox? The question is not as simple as it parait.Les arguments for this coverage are not lacking, such as the frequency of the disease and its complications sometimes very severe, or the results obtained in the U.S. States after integration of this vaccine in the immunization schedule. Very frequent and exceptionally graveTout First, despite a very low risk of severe complications, the very high frequency of the disease (over 700,000 cases per year), each year has led more than 1,000 hospitalizations for severe complications and twenty deces.La majority of cases of chickenpox occur in children under 10 years (89 %), 59 % among children under 5 years with a complication rate of 4 %. .
Mild in most cases, chickenpox can be complicated by secondary infections cutaneous (26 %) or respiratory (23 %) and ENT patients (24 %). But complications are more frequent among those aged 15 and over (6 %) than in 0-14 years (3 %). Overall, neurological complications predominate in 5-14 years and pulmonary complications in more than 14 years. Chickenpox appears as the probable cause of some deaths, which occur mostly in people over 15 years.


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