Chicken Pox Medicine: Mom Warns Parents Of Nurofen Side Effects

A mother has warned other parents on social media about the danger of Nurofen to children. The mom, named Hayley Lyons, said that her son Lewis suffered from a serious skin reaction when he was given the medicine to treat his chicken pox.

Showing photos of the body of her son, Hayley Lyons shared on Facebook her bad experience with the ibuprofen-based medicine. She claimed that instead of making her child better, it made his chicken pox worse.

"This type of medicine is anti-inflammatory, it reacts with chicken pox making them go deeper into the skin tissue," Lyons said. She noted that four doctors recommended the drug for her son.

"It was only wen we took Lewis to Alderhey because the doctors from our hospital kept sending him home saying it was 'just chicken pox' we found this out," she added on her Facebook post. Lyons said Lewis ended up having septicaemia or blood poisoning because of his reaction to the medicine.

Nottingham Children's Hospital pediatrician Stephanie Smith told Metro that ibuprofen is linked to skin reactions among people who have chicken pox. She said, however, that the risk is low.

"There's a recognition that ibuprofen has a link with skin reactions in children with chicken pox," Smith said. 'It would be good to advise parents and doctors about the risks," the doctor added, noting that it is better to give paracetamol to kids who have chicken pox.

According to Mirror, information on the ibuprofen-based medicines disclosed that these should not be given to kids with chicken pox since these can cause "severe secondary infections." With these dangers to a child, Lyons reiterated her warning on the medicine saying that Lewis could have suffered much more if they were not given proper medical attention. "Only because we persevered and took Lewis to a children's hospital off our own back was he OK," she added.