The Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) has declared an outbreak of chickenpox at its facilities.
CHEO said a child contracted chickenpox through community transmission before being admitted to the Ottawa hospital for other reasons.
The child later developed a rash, and two other children were then infected.
Any other families whose children might have been exposed have been notified.
Get weekly health news
CHEO said its safety precautions are in place and the risk of transmission is “extremely low.”
The outbreak comes as Ottawa continues to grapple with the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Though the rate of infection among youth has grown in Ottawa since mid-July, CHEO has not experienced any coronavirus outbreaks thus far in the pandemic. Ottawa Public Health (OPH) data shows that 42 of the city’s 139 active COVID-19 cases are in people under 20 years old.
A teenager with COVID-19 was admitted to CHEO’s intensive care unit a few weeks ago, but recent OPH data shows the individual has since been discharged from the ward.
- Report says wait times in Quebec emergency rooms were 11 minutes shorter last year
- Ultra low emission zones linked to improved lung capacity in kids: UK study
- Moderna’s experimental mRNA cancer treatment progresses, shares spike
- Celine Dion shares health update on stiff-person syndrome ahead of Paris shows
CHEO encouraged all parents to vaccinate their children for all preventable childhood infectious diseases.
Comments
Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.