Chicken Pox

Acceptability at Recruitment

ACCEPTABLE

Acceptability at VT / Work-Up

QUALIFIED

Individual at Risk

Recipient

Explanation of Condition

Infection, usually of small children and infants, characterised by a blistering rash which may be intensely itchy. In adults, more severe symptoms such as lung infection or brain infection may by life-threatening.

Guidance

Donor must wait until two weeks after chicken pox lesions are completely healed and scabs have fallen off before donation. The same guidance applies for zoster reactivation (shingles), unless there is persistent pain, in which case the medical officer should be informed.

If contact with chicken-pox or shingles infected individual between VT and donation, and varicella serology is negative, allow four weeks between contact and donation.

If varicella serology is unknown yet, find out if the donor has had chicken pox before.

You cannot get shingles from someone with shingles or chickenpox but you can get chickenpox from someone with shingles if you have not had chickenpox before.

When people get chickenpox, the virus stays in the body. It can be reactivated later and cause shingles.

Pseudonyms or Related Conditions

Shingles

Varicella zoster virus

Version

Version 1, Edition 1

Date of Last Update

23rd July 2025