Chickenpox is usually a mild illness, but it does often make patients and their parents miserable. In addition, young children can rarely have serious complications from the disease. Chickenpox can be a serious illness in adolescents and adults, and should definitely be prevented in these people if they have not already had the disease. An additional benefit to preventing chickenpox in young children is the prevention of missed days from school and work.

Chickenpox vaccine was approved for use by the FDA in the United States in April 1995. The vaccine has been in use in Japan and Korea for over 20 years, and has undergone extensive testing in the US for 10 years. Over 4 million doses of the vaccine have been given, and it has been shown to be extremely safe. The vaccine is 70% to 90% effective at preventing the disease. Side effects of the vaccine include soreness, swelling and redness at the site the vaccine was given, low-grade fever, fussiness, and tiredness. A rash of several pox lesions at the injection site or elsewhere on the body can occur up to one month after the vaccine.

The major concern that most pediatricians and parents have had about the vaccine have been its price, questions about how long protection will last, and reluctance to add another shot to the already long list of childhood vaccines. The state's decision to pay for the vaccine not only avoids cost concerns, but also means that more and more children will receive the vaccine. We feel that this will result in fewer and fewer cases of the disease, and therefore a greater risk that children will reach an older age before getting chickenpox if they do not receive the vaccine. This could result in a more serious illness.

It is not yet clear how long the protection provided by the vaccine will last, but studies indicate that it may be at least twenty years. This issue will be studied a great deal in the future, and recommendations concerning the need for booster doses will be clear. Booster doses are already routinely administered in adolescents for tetanus and diptheria, so this should not be a major problem with chickenpox vaccine if necessary. In the near future, the chickenpox vaccine will likely be combined with the MMR vaccine, and probably will be given routinely at both 15 months and 12 years.