Face-to-face exposure to someone with early chickenpox will put you at risk of infection. Even spending some time in the same room as a person with early chickenpox will put you at risk.
The highest risk is associated with living in the same household as a person with chickenpox. Nine out of 10 people who have not had chickenpox before will contract the disease under these circumstances.
Revised and reviewed by Prof Eugene Weinberg, Paediatrician and Paediatric Allergist, Health24 expert, February 2015.