The fifth disease has spread all over the world, and tends to spread in the late winter and early spring, but there may be sporadic cases of disease in any other year.

But we see the fifth’s disease symptoms and how it manifests: first begin to appear very red patches on her face when slapped on the cheeks as (in fact many doctors call the disease of slaps) that last up to 3 days, after the eruption always with a red color, usually lighter, and extends to the trunk, arms, and legs often sparing the palms and soles. When the eruption began clearing tends to look like a fence. It is important to remember is that the spots come and go even within a few hours, but often do not disappear completely before 3 or 4 weeks and you will see that taking a hot bath to your child, or after having done sports or after being the sun appears that the rash he wakes.

The fifth disease, or megaloeritema, is caused by a virus called parvovirus B 19. The infection occurs through direct contact with mucus, saliva or respiratory droplets transmitted through coughing and sneezing but also talking with the infected individual.

The infection occurs mainly in spring, especially on children of school age and usually occurs after a period between 4 days and two weeks.

After appearing in the raised red spots, from the trunk down, that it will eventually fade and fade, even if they cause a very annoying itch. Furthermore, when the eruption begins exhausted the possibility of infection.

The average length of fifth disease is 11 weeks, but may reach 4-5 weeks. After healing the rash may reappear, for example, excessive sun exposure, or even for a hot bath, but this phenomenon should not worry.

Like other, fifth disease is self-limiting and do not need no treatment, in particular, as there is no vaccine to prevent it. You can soothe the itching by antihistamines.
The megaloeritema in itself is not a serious illness, but can be dangerous in conjunction with rare forms of anemia such as thalassemia and Fauvism.

The contagiousness of the disease between one week before the onset of fifth’s disease and adult symptoms until the onset of the exanthema, the appearance of the exanthema on the subject is no longer contagious. The patients can have an incubation period of 1-2 weeks, but, exceptionally, the fifth’s disease and adult symptoms may appear 3 weeks after infection. Rarely there can appear warning signs, except a possible slight increase in fever.

With every passing day the rash becomes paler and takes a look at lace, without giving rise to scaling.

The duration of the disease an average of ten days, but in some cases can last for several weeks. In the following months is not uncommon for the rash reappear briefly in association with intense exertion or emotional stress or even during very hot baths or sun exposure.

The disease is also called erythema infectiosum or megaloeritema and it is a common childhood exanthem caused by parvovirus B19 (PV-B19), the smallest DNA viruses pathogenic to humans. Typically it is a disease of children (3-15 years), but can also occur in adulthood.

More frequent in late winter-early spring tends to be epidemic cycles every 4-7 years. In the classic children resolve spontaneously while in adults, immunocompromised persons, in patients with anemia in pregnant women or the course can be severe. After incubation period of 4-14 days can appear flu-like symptoms including headache, rhinitis, low-grade fever (below 38 ° C), pharyngitis, malaise persisting for 2-3 days but are so low that often go unnoticed.

This phase coincides with viremia that lasts a week: this is the period of infectivity, the virus being removed in large quantities through the respiratory route to put aerosolized droplets (droplets Flugge). After the phase viremia, the disease occurs predominantly in its clinical skin and joints.