I just found out that my cousin’s kid, who was playing with my kid all day on Thanksgiving, has come down with chicken pox. They discovered pox on his tummy Thanksgiving evening as he was taking his bath.
However, my kid (5 years old) just got the chicken pox shot during her last checkup (Nov. 12). Should I be vigilantly watching for signs of chicken pox, or should I be secure in the knowledge that she is already immune? How long does it take for a vaccine to work?
I am not very familiar with that specific vaccine, but it has probably activated not only the IgM (initial antibodies) but the IgG antibodies as well (the antibodies used for long term immunity). So more than likely the exposure to more chicken pox may be a good thing to further boost the child’s immunity.
1: Be vigilant.
2: Longer than 10 days.
To elaborate: 6 weeks is generally considered a safe guess as to how long it takes to stimulate an adequate immune response. Some become protected sooner, some later, some not at all. But 10 days is definitely not a long enough period of time. And zoster (chicken pox) becomes contagious before the lesions appear.
Good luck!
QtM, MD