Shingles is caused by the chickenpox virus, which remains inactive in your body after you’ve had chickenpox. It can be reactivated many years later as shingles, and cause a painful skin rash that blisters. You can’t get shingles unless you’ve had chickenpox. After you’ve had chickenpox, the virus stays in your body in a dormant state.
Shingles is not a life-threatening illness, but it can be very painful
The main symptom of shingles is pain, other symptoms include a rash and blisters that form on the skin. The virus affects the nerve endings in the skin, causing pain and usually an itchy rash with blisters.
Usually the rash occurs on only one side of the body and in a belt-like distribution on the chest and back. However, in some people, especially children, it may affect other parts of the body or both sides of the body.
Shingles rashes often will scab over in 7 to 10 days and completely clear up within 2 to 4 weeks.
The most common complication of shingles is postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). PHN is nerve pain that occurs where the shingles rash was after the rash has gone away. In some cases, this pain can last for months or years after other symptoms have gone away.
Some people are at greater risk of getting shingles than others.
Most people who get shingles feel pain, burning or itching in a certain section of their body.
Shingles is not something that should be ignored. Treatment can help you feel better and speed recovery, so see your healthcare provider if you think that you have shingles. Doctors usually diagnose shingles after examining the skin and asking about your medical history and symptoms.
Even though there is no cure for shingles, doctors can prescribe medicine to help ease your pain and shorten the time you have it.
If you have had shingles, be sure to talk to your health care provider about getting the shingles vaccine to prevent other cases of the disease.
Shingles usually gets better in around 2 to 4 weeks, but the pain can continue for some time.
FACT: Your risk for getting shingles increases as you age.
The good news is that there are effective treatments for shingles and the treatments are the same whether you’re an adult or child with shingles.
You can take steps to ease the pain and discomfort while you wait for the rash and blisters to heal.
Start treatment as soon as possible to ease symptoms and speed along healing time.
Before you start treatment, it's important to diagnose what kind of shingles you have. You can do this by visiting your doctor or a dermatologist, who will look at the rash and perform blood tests to determine whether it's herpes zoster.
The most effective way to prevent shingles is through vaccination after age 60 (and even earlier if you have medical reasons). Getting vaccinated against chickenpox can reduce your risk by about half.
You should also avoid getting sunburned. Sunlight may trigger an outbreak of shingles if you already have the virus inside your body (even if you don't notice anything).
Direct contact with the fluid from your rash blisters can transfer VZV to persons who have never had chickenpox or have never had the chickenpox vaccination if you have shingles. If they become infected, they will have chickenpox rather than shingles. Later in adulthood, they may contract shingles.
If you cover the shingles rash, the chance of transferring VZV to others is minimal. Before the rash blisters develop or after the rash crusts, people with shingles cannot transfer the virus.
Image sources: everydayhealth.com & healthline.com
