Disease that Pops

I am certain all of you ever heard of the term measles, right? Well basically measles is the most serious of the common childhood viral illnesses.Infants younger than one year age and malnourished children are prone to getting serious and even fatal measles.

So what are the causes of measles?

It is mainly caused by the measles virus, which occurs in almost each and everyone of us in the world, except for those who have been vaccinated. The virus is spread in form of droplets from the nose and throat of people who already got affected with measles. Another person who breathes in these droplets will collect the virus which then infects the surface cells of that person's upper airways. A person will be affected for from about three days before the rash appears and for up to five days after its appearance.Measles is one deadly contagious disease and everyone will highly get into contact with infected people unless they've been vaccinated or have had measles before.
And what are the symptoms?

• High fever, (ranging between 39 - 40.5 degree Celcius)
• Runny nose
• Harsh, dry cough
• Red, inflamed eyes (conjunctivitis) and aversion to bright light
• After all the symptoms above, small white spots on a red base can be seen upon careful examination of the inside of the mouth, usually opposite the molar teeth on the inside of the cheeks.
• The rash start to show up along the neck, from behind the ears, to the entire face, upper arms and chest, then spreads over the back, stomach and thighs and eventually reaching the feet

How to cure it?

Yes you shall go to the doctor for further treatment, but many did not know that measles can be managed at home. Simple remedies such as paracetamol or mefenamic acid. Regular cleaning of the eyes with warm salty water and cotton wool help prevent bacterial infection. The mouth should also be rinsed with warm salty water. But if there is any complication occurs, such as diarrhea or pneumonia, the person needs to be admitted to the hospital.

Many claimed that measles and chicken pox are the same. Well, they both are similar in may ways more or less but still they are two different diseases. How do we tell the differences between measles and chickenpox?
First, they originate from two separate viruses. Both diseases have rashes, but the rash is totally dissimilar in terms of appearance and behaviour. Measles is much more difficult to handle as compared to chickenpox. Most people are sicker with measles as they tend to have higher fever, and a greater risk for complications.And typically, pox rashes are way itchier than measles. Chicken pox rash does not flow together meanwhile measles rash typically begins on the upper part of the body. In fact, measles rash can last for a longer portion of time.
If you feel you have the early symptoms of both, a doctor's consultation is advised. Take a good care of yourself everyone :)