Rubella in children should be promptly monitored

Roseola in children is caused by a virus and often affects babies and toddlers greatly. The disease causes fever and a macular rash within a few days.

The rash can be considered a sign of serious and alarming illness. However, in reality, roseola (a type of typhus fever ) in children tends to be mild and you can care for your baby at home. The disease usually resolves on its own over a period of one week.

Rubella can also affect adolescents and adults, but it's uncommon because most children were infected with the disease at a young age and roseola rarely appears again stay with the same person.

In addition, roseola is sometimes also referred to as “infant roseola” or “the sixth disease”, as it is the 6th ranked infectious disease among children.

What are the signs and symptoms of roseola in children?

Roseola in children does not always have symptoms that are easy to spot. If the body is infected, symptoms usually appear a week or two after exposure. Here are the symptoms you can recognize in your baby:

Fever: at first, children may have a high fever suddenly, about 38ºC or higher

Sore throat

Runny nose

Cough

Mild diarrhea

Loss of appetite, anorexia

Swollen eyelids and swollen glands in the neck.

The above symptoms usually last 3−5 days, at which time the baby's body will often appear a erythema. Some children may have a seizure due to a high fever .

How to self-treat roseola in children at home?

There is no specific treatment for roseola, but some of the following tips can help you treat your baby at home:

You should let your baby rest if he is not feeling well. Your baby will feel more comfortable if they can rest in bed until the condition gets better. However, if your baby seems well without rest, don't force him or her;

You let your baby drink lots of water. If you are breast-feeding or bottle-feeding, try to feed your baby as much as possible;

You should keep the baby's room cool, for example, you can use a thin blanket on the bed, do not use thick blankets when your baby sleep;

Alternatively, you can  give ibuprofen  or paracetamol if your baby has a fever and discomfort. However, make sure you always carefully read the medical information that comes with the prescriptions to find out the correct dosage before giving any medicine to your baby. In particular, do not give paracetamol and ibuprofen at the same time.

Note, you should not give aspirin to children under 16 unless directed and advised by your doctor.

How to prevent the spread of roseola in children

Rubella is spread similarly to the common colds and flu. They can be spread when an infected person coughs, sneezes or comes into contact with infected objects or surfaces.

However, roseola doesn't spread so easily, and there's no need to isolate your child if your child is in school and is healthy enough to go to school.

In case your baby is tired and unwell, leave him at home until he feels better. However, it is not necessary to wait until the last spot has disappeared.

The following measures can help prevent the infection from spreading to others:

Make sure you and your baby wash their hands often

You should let your child use a tissue when sneezing or coughing and throwing away used tissues immediately, and wash their hands afterwards.

You should keep regular rash area surfaces clean

Do not let your child share dishes, dishes, cutlery and utensils and personal belongings with others.

Currently, there is still no accurate information about how long roseola in children or how long it takes the baby to overcome the transmission of roseola in children. Babies can overcome the infection during the time they are sick, even before the disease progresses. In addition to roseola, scarlet fever is equally dangerous to the health of your baby, you can refer to the article here.