health

Fifth disease occurs most commonly in children between the ages of 5
and 15 years, but adults can also get it. It often occurs in outbreaks (for
example, among classmates at school or children in a child-care center) in
the winter and spring, but people can get it throughout the year.
Fifth disease spreads quickly. At home, up to half of family members
exposed to someone with fifth disease become infected. If an outbreak
occurs in school, up to 60 percent of students may get the virus.
A person with fifth disease can spread the infection in the early part of
the illness, before the rash develops. By the time the rash appears (about
a week after being exposed to the virus), a person likely is no longer
contagious. Once someone is infected with parvovirus B19, that person
develops immunity to it and will not usually become infected again.
Parvovirus B19 passes from one person to another through nose and
mouth fluids, such as mucus and saliva. Any direct contact with the fluids
of an infected person, whether through a cough or sneeze or by sharing
drinking glasses or utensils, can spread the infection.
Fifth disease can also be passed from pregnant women to their unborn
babies. Most of the time, the baby is not harmed. Occasionally the
infection can cause severe anemia in the baby and lead to miscarriage,
especially if the baby was infected in the first half of pregnancy.