Practices will not be expected to do any additional testing now chickenpox is a notifiable disease, UK public health officials have said.
In guidance to health professionals on implementation of the change which came into force this month, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed that chickenpox is primarily a clinical diagnosis.
‘There is currently no additional testing proposed for surveillance purposes,’ the guidance continues.
Related Article: ‘Potential’ introduction of chickenpox vaccine in early 2026
Neither will there be any change to existing practice in relation to how patients are assessed for chickenpox, UKHSA said.
Notification of a chickenpox case can be made by a registered medical practitioner ‘regardless of the type of consultation’, it says.
The recently introduced electronic reporting system for notifiable diseases will also reduce the burden on practices when logging cases, the guidance adds.
It also noted that the change does not require specific changes to any existing clinical pathways where patients are assessed or managed by health professionals other than registered medical practitioners.
Notifications for chickenpox were introduced on 6 April as part of recommendations from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) on the introduction of varicella vaccination.
While not everyone with chickenpox will seek medical advice, monitoring those that do will help measure the impact of any future vaccination programme.
Related Article: Ten top tips: virtual consulting for primary care dermatology
It also shows how a future vaccination programme could be optimised.
‘In line with any government decisions related to the JCVI recommendation for a varicella vaccination programme, we will keep under review any testing requirements for surveillance purposes in the future and will communicate with health professionals in the event of any future developments.’
NHS England has said the ‘potential’ introduction of a varicella vaccine could be launched in January 2026, subject to ‘final ministerial agreement’.
The JCVI recommended in November 2023 that a universal chickenpox vaccination programme be included in the routine childhood immunisation schedule.
Related Article: How dermatology patients become detectives
This article was previously published by our sister publication Pulse
