Parents are being urged to never use ibuprofen to treat a child's chickenpox.
Many families switch between painkillers paracetamol and ibuprofen to treat symptoms of other childhood illnesses.
But there are several dangers to giving a child ibuprofen when they are suffering from chickenpox.
That's because it's an anti-inflammatory and can increase the chance of certain infections and skin reactions - reports the Manchester Evening News.
Warnings about using ibuprofen have been issued before, but now a new warning, shared on the Care Champions Facebook page , has quickly gone viral as people share the reminder not to use the drug.
The notice, which stems from an earlier St John Ambulance post, states: "Chickenpox is going around again! Please remember NOT to give your children nurofen/ibuprofen if you think your child has it.
"This type of medicine is an anti-inflammatory. It reacts with the chickenpox making them go deeper into the skin tissue, potentially causing a more severe secondary infection."
It lists 'better options' as:
- Paracetamol for fever
- Calamine lotion for the itch
- Keep your child hydrated
The post, which has been shared 19k times, shows an image of a child with chickenpox alongside smaller pictures of what happens to the sores if ibuprofen is given.
There is a vaccination against chickenpox, but it is not part of the routine childhood vaccination schedule in the UK, and is currently only available on the NHS for those who are at high risk of spreading the virus to particularly vulnerable people.
In 2017, Superdrug became the very first high street retailer to offer the vaccination.
