Shingles: Tests and Diagnosis

The herpes zoster virus is responsible for two illnesses that are related: chicken pox and shingles. While chicken pox is largely a childhood disease, shingles most often strikes people in their senior years. The dormant virus reactivates itself to produce a rash that is similar to chicken pox. A physical exam is used most often to diagnose shingles, but some other tests may be performed as well.

Medical History

• Doctors can determine whether a person has shingles in part by knowing whether she has had chicken pox. People who have not had chicken pox cannot get shingles.

Visual Inspection

• Visual inspection is often the easiest way to diagnose shingles, according to the Mayo Clinic. The rash of blisters is usually limited to one side of the body or around the waist.

Report of Symptoms

• The reporting of specific symptoms can confirm a diagnosis of shingles. Sharp, burning pain that runs along a nerve path (usually on one side of the body) is consistent with the virus, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS).

Blood Test

• A blood test may reveal whether a person has shingles, even if he does not have any of the usual blisters.

Sampling of Blisters

• Doctors can diagnose shingles by taking a scraping of the skin eruption and examining it in a lab.