Symptoms usually occur 10-21 days after contact with the
chickenpox virus. Initial symptoms include: - General feeling of
malaise - Loss of appetite Within 1-2 days after the initial
symptoms, a rash develops. Characteristics of the rash include:
- At first, the rash consists of small, flat, red spots. - The
spots become raised and form clusters of round, itchy, fluid-
filled blisters on a red base. - The blisters develop in
clusters, with new clusters forming over 5-6 days. - Once the
rash develops, there is usually a variety of spots visible: flat
red areas, blisters with clear fluid, blisters with cloudy
fluid, and open blisters. This variety helps doctors to be
confident that the rash is due to chickenpox. - The rash usually
develops on the skin above the waist, including the scalp.
Exposed areas are often most significantly affected. - The rash
may sometimes appear on the inside of the eyelids, in the mouth,
nose, throat, upper airway, voice box, rectum, or vagina. - In
healthy children, the rash usually