Shingles !!TOP!!
Shingles isn't life-threatening. But it can be very painful. Vaccines can help lower the risk of shingles. Early treatment may shorten a shingles infection and lessen the chance of complications. The most common complication is postherpetic neuralgia. This is a painful condition that causes shingles pain for a long time after your blisters have cleared.
shingles
Pain is usually the first symptom of shingles. For some people, the pain can be intense. Depending on the location of the pain, it can sometimes be mistaken for problems with the heart, lungs or kidneys. Some people experience shingles pain without ever developing the rash.
Most commonly, the shingles rash develops as a stripe of blisters that wraps around either the left or right side of the torso. Sometimes the shingles rash occurs around one eye or on one side of the neck or face.
Varicella-zoster is part of a group of viruses called herpes viruses. This is the same group that includes the viruses that cause cold sores and genital herpes. As a result, shingles is also known as herpes zoster. But the virus that causes chickenpox and shingles isn't the same virus that causes cold sores or genital herpes, which is a sexually transmitted infection.
A person with shingles can pass the varicella-zoster virus to anyone who isn't immune to chickenpox. This usually occurs through direct contact with the open sores of the shingles rash. Once infected, though, the person will develop chickenpox rather than shingles.
Chickenpox can be dangerous for some people. Until your shingles blisters scab over, you are contagious. Avoid physical contact with anyone who hasn't yet had chickenpox or the chickenpox vaccine. That includes people with weakened immune systems, pregnant women and newborns.
Anyone who has ever had chickenpox can develop shingles. Most adults in the United States had chickenpox when they were children. That was before the availability of the routine childhood vaccination that now protects against chickenpox.
A shingles vaccine may help prevent shingles. People who are eligible should get the Shingrix vaccine, which has been available in the United States since its approval by the Food and Drug Administration in 2017. The Zostavax vaccine is no longer available in the U.S., but other countries may still use it.
Shingrix is approved and recommended for people age 50 and older, whether they've had shingles or not. People who've had the Zostavax vaccine in the past or don't know whether they've had chickenpox may also receive the Shingrix vaccine.
Shingrix is a nonliving vaccine made of a virus component. It's given in two doses, with 2 to 6 months between doses. The most common side effects of the shingles vaccine are redness, pain and swelling at the injection site. Some people also experience fatigue, headache and other side effects.
The shingles vaccine doesn't guarantee that you won't get shingles. But this vaccine will likely reduce the course and severity of the disease. And it will likely lower your risk of postherpetic neuralgia. Studies suggest that Shingrix offers protection against shingles for more than five years.
A shingles rash starts as a cluster of small bumps. These bumps look different than the surrounding skin and present differently on different skin tones. On darker skin, they may be pink, grayish, purple, or brown. On lighter skin, the bumps appear red.
Shingles is caused by varicella zoster virus (VZV), the same virus that causes chickenpox. After a person recovers from chickenpox, the virus stays dormant (inactive) in the body. This virus can reactivate years later, causing shingles.
Is it contagious?Yes, but you cannot give anyone shingles. While you have blisters, you can spread a virus. If that virus infects someone who hasn't had chickenpox (or the chickenpox vaccine), the person can get chickenpox.
When you have chickenpox as a child, your body fights off the varicella-zoster virus and the physical signs of chickenpox fade away, but the virus always remains in your body. In adulthood, sometimes the virus becomes active again. This time, the varicella-zoster virus makes its second appearance in the form of shingles.
About 1 million cases of shingles are diagnosed every year in the U.S. The risk of shingles increases as you get older, with about half the cases occurring in people over the age of 50. Shingles develops in about 10% of people who have had chickenpox at an earlier time in their lives.
Shingles can be diagnosed by the way the rash is distributed on your body. The blisters of a shingles rash usually appear in a band on one side of your body. Shingles also may be diagnosed in a laboratory using scrapings or a swab of the fluid from the blisters.
These drugs may ease the discomfort and make the symptoms stop sooner, particularly if you start them within 72 hours of the first sign of shingles. They may also help prevent the pain that can happen months and years later, called postherpetic neuralgia. These medications include:
Antibacterial drugs may be prescribed if you develop a bacterial infection due to the shingles rash. Anti-inflammatory drugs like prednisone may be prescribed if shingles affects your eyes or other parts of your face.
Two vaccines are available in the United States to reduce your chance of developing shingles and postherpetic neuralgia. One vaccine, Zostavax, has been available since 2006. The second vaccine, Shingrix, has been available since 2017. Shingrix is recommended as the preferred vaccine by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, a group of medical and public health experts.
Shingrix (recombinant zoster vaccine) is given as a two-dose shot in your upper arm. You should receive the second dose (shot) two to six months after receiving the first. Shingrix has been shown to be more than 90% effective in preventing shingles and postherpetic neuralgia. Its effectiveness remains above 85% for at least four years after receiving the vaccine.
Yes. The CDC, however, recommends Zostavax for adults age 60 and older, but not routinely for people aged 50 to 59. Zostavax is given as a single-dose shot versus the two-dose shot for Shingrix. Zostavax is less effective than Shingrix in preventing shingles (51% vs more than 90%) and postherpetic neuralgia (67% vs more than 90%).
Shingles can be a very painful condition. If you think you have the symptoms of shingles, see your healthcare provider right away. Starting antiviral medications early can ease your discomfort and end symptoms earlier.
Although both diseases produce a rash, measles and shingles are completely different and unrelated diseases. Shingles is caused by the varicella-zoster virus and measles is caused by the rubeola virus.
The main symptom of shingles is pain, followed by a rash that develops into itchy blisters, similar in appearance to chickenpox. New blisters may appear for up to a week, but a few days after appearing they become yellowish in colour, flatten and dry out.
An episode of shingles typically lasts around two to four weeks, however in some cases the pain may last for many weeks once the rash has disappeared. Shingles usually affects a specific area on one side of the body and doesn't cross over the midline of the body (an imaginary line running from between your eyes down past the belly button).
You should see your GP if you are under 18 years old, pregnant or have a weakened immune system (the body's natural defence system) and you think you have been exposed to someone with chickenpox or shingles and haven't had chickenpox before.
Most people have chickenpox in childhood, but after the illness has gone, the varicella-zoster virus remains dormant (inactive) in the nervous system. The immune system keeps the virus in check, but later in life it can be reactivated and cause shingles.
If you have shingles, you're contagious until the last blister has dried and scabbed over. To help prevent the virus being passed on, avoid sharing towels or flannels, swimming, or playing contact sports. You should also avoid work or school if your rash is weeping (oozing fluid) and can't be covered.
Some cases of shingles can affect one of the eyes and are known as ophthalmic shingles. This occurs when the virus is reactivated in part of the trigeminal nerve, a nerve that controls sensation and movement in your face.
You should also see your GP if you are pregnant or have a weakened immune system (the body's natural defence system) and you think you have been exposed to someone with chickenpox or shingles and haven't had chickenpox before.
The blisters that develop as a result of shingles contain virus particles. If you have not had chickenpox before, you can catch it from direct contact with the fluid from the blisters of someone who has shingles, or from something that has the fluid on it, such as bed sheets or a towel.
You may also be referred to a specialist if you have an unusually persistent case of suspected shingles that is not responding to treatment, or if you have been diagnosed with the condition more than twice.
However, it's still important to see your GP or pharmacist as soon as possible if you recognise the symptoms of shingles, as early treatment may help reduce the severity of the condition and the risk of potential complications.
As well as painkilling medication, some people with shingles may also be prescribed a course of antiviral tablets lasting 7 to 10 days. Commonly prescribed antiviral medicines include aciclovir, valaciclovir and famciclovir.
Antiviral medicines are most effective when taken within 72 hours of your rash appearing, although they may be started up to a week after your rash appears if you are at risk of severe shingles or developing complications.
If you are pregnant and have shingles, it is likely your GP will discuss your case with a specialist to decide whether the benefits of antiviral medication significantly outweigh any possible risks. Shingles will not harm your unborn baby.
If you have severe pain as a result of shingles, you may be prescribed an antidepressant medicine. These medications are commonly used to treat depression, but they have also proven to be useful in relieving nerve pain, such as the pain associated with shingles. 041b061a72