Is fifth disease more likely to occur at a certain time of year?
Parvovirus disease can occur anytime, but it tends to be more common in late winter and early spring. Some cases of fifth disease are sporadic, but others are part of community or school outbreaks (particularly in elementary school). Can children with fifth disease attend daycare or school? Yes. It is fine for otherwise healthy children to attend daycare or school classes, because not only does this infection rarely make them very sick, but they actually aren’t contagious once their symptoms develop. Is this the same parvovirus that affects pets? Parvovirus B19 only infects humans; it is not the same as the animal parvoviruses you may hear about from your veterinarian when he suggests parvovirus immunization for your dog or cat. Children and animals do not catch parvovirus infection from one another. Prevention Because parvovirus B19 is everywhere, and because most people are infectious before they develop any symptoms, it is extremely difficult to prevent this infection. Therefore, it
