Add chickenpox vaccine to UK child immunisation programme -vaccine advisors

LONDON (Reuters) -Britain should add the chickenpox vaccine to its routine childhood immunisation programme, the government's health regulator said on Tuesday.

The vaccine would be offered to children in two doses, at 12 and 18 months of age, the UK Health Security Agency said in a statement.

The recommendation would bring the UK in line with many other countries, like the United States and Germany, which already routinely vaccinate children against the illness. The Department of Health will have the final decision on implementing the vaccine.

While chickenpox, caused by the varicella-zoster virus, is relatively mild for most children, there can be complications causing severe illness and, very rarely, death, the agency said. It usually causes an itchy rash and is highly contagious.

The recommendation for Britain came from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), a panel of external experts.

(Reporting by Sarah Young, writing by Muvija M and Jennifer Rigby; Editing by Bernadette Baum)