Pediatric ATI Practice Exam

A nurse is responding to a parent's inquiry about when a child with varicella will no longer be contagious. What should the nurse state?

1. When the child no longer has an increased temperature.

2. Three days after the rash first appears.

3. When the child's lesions are crusted, usually 6 days after they appear.

4. Two to three weeks, when the lesions completely disappear.

The correct answer is: When the child's lesions are crusted, usually 6 days after they appear.

The correct answer is that the child with varicella is no longer contagious when the lesions are crusted, typically around six days after they appear. This is based on the understanding of varicella, commonly known as chickenpox, which is caused by the varicella-zoster virus. The contagious period for varicella begins about 1-2 days before the rash appears and lasts until all lesions have crusted over. The formation of crusts indicates that the infection is resolving and the risk of transmission is significantly reduced. By the time six days have passed since the rash first appeared, the majority of lesions will have crusted, and the child can safely return to normal activities without posing a risk to others. Other options, such as a lack of fever or specific timeframes like three days or two to three weeks, are not accurate indicators of when a child is no longer contagious because they do not consider the state of the lesions, which is the most crucial factor in determining contagion in varicella.