Varicella skin complications in childhood: A case series and a systematic review of the literature

Abstract

Even if varicella is generally considered a harmless disease in childhood, severe complications may occur. We examined varicella skin complications (VSCs) in hospitalized immunologically healthy children, over a nine-year period. We also systematically analyzed previous reports to calculate the rate of VSCs in the literature. VSCs occurred in 16.4% of children hospitalized for varicella. This figure is in accordance with the literature, as the range of VSCs was 2.6%–41.2%. Skin complications may represent determinants of hospitalization and of other indirect costs in young children.