The vast majority of recent deaths of children with chickenpox (90 %) involved the use of ibuprofen, which in turn brought about fatal attacks of necrotising fascitis (NF) otherwise known as "flesh eating bacteria". Under NO circumstance is a child to be given ibuprofen when chickenpox is suspected.
http://www.suntimes.co.za/1999/05/02/news/news07.htm "CHILDREN with chickenpox who are fed over-the-counter painkillers run the risk of being infected by a deadly flesh-eating bacterium.
Doctors say the only way to treat the aggressive bacterium - which dissolves human flesh - is by amputating infected limbs and treating patients with antibiotics.
The dangerous link between household medication, chickenpox and the bacterium was exposed in a medical alert to doctors this week.
"Virtually every child in the country will be exposed to chickenpox at some or other time," said Dr Stephen Toovey of Medinfo, an organisation run by South African doctors which monitors international medical trends and research.
"This flesh-eating bug causes rapid tissue destruction, and entire limbs can be lost within a matter of hours," he said.
"Amputation and a high dose of antibiotics offer the only hope of survival."
His warning was triggered by the results of a recent study of children who were hospitalised within three weeks of an attack of chickenpox in the US.
Dr Danielle Zerr, of the Children's Hospital in Seattle, headed a team of scientists who compared 19 children stricken with the bacterium with 29 control children. Those infected were 10 times more likely to have been given ibuprofen as a painkiller."
http://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/pa/pa_chickenp_hhg.htm "...Acetaminophen may be given in the dose appropriate for your child's age for a few days if your child develops a fever over 102°F (39°C). Do not give ibuprofen products because of a possible link with severe Strep infections. Do not give aspirin to children and adolescents with chickenpox because of the link with Reye's syndrome."
http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/cgi/content/abstract/103/4/783 Results. After controlling for gender, age, and group A streptococcus isolation, cases were more likely than controls to have used ibuprofen before hospitalization (OR, 11.5; 95% confidence interval, 1.4 to 96.9). In most children, ibuprofen was initiated after the onset of symptoms of secondary infection. Children with NF complicated by renal insufficiency and/or streptococcal toxic shock syndrome were more likely than children with uncomplicated NF to have used ibuprofen (OR, 16.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.0 to 825.0). Children with complicated NF also had a higher mean maximum temperature (40.9°C vs 39.3°C), and a longer mean duration of secondary symptoms (1.7 days vs 0.6 days) before admission than children with uncomplicated NF.
Conclusion. Ibuprofen use was associated with NF in the setting of primary varicella. Additional studies are needed to establish whether ibuprofen use has a causal role in the development of NF and its complications during varicella. Key words: fasciitis, necrotizing, ibuprofen, varicella-zoster virus, Streptococcus pyogenes, cResults. After controlling for gender, age, and group A streptococcus isolation, cases were more likely than controls to have used ibuprofen before hospitalization (OR, 11.5; 95% confidence interval, 1.4 to 96.9). In most children, ibuprofen was initiated after the onset of symptoms of secondary infection. Children with NF complicated by renal insufficiency and/or streptococcal toxic shock syndrome were more likely than children with uncomplicated NF to have used ibuprofen (OR, 16.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.0 to 825.0). Children with complicated NF also had a higher mean maximum temperature (40.9°C vs 39.3°C), and a longer mean duration of secondary symptoms (1.7 days vs 0.6 days) before admission than children with uncomplicated NF.
Conclusion. Ibuprofen use was associated with NF in the setting of primary varicella. Additional studies are needed to establish whether ibuprofen use has a causal role in the development of NF and its complications during varicella. Key words: fasciitis, necrotizing, ibuprofen, varicella-zoster virus, Streptococcus pyogenes, case-control study. ase-control study.