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Shingles Medical Definition

Shingles is caused by the varicella-zoster virus, which is the same virus that causes you to get chickenpox as a child. According to the Connecticut Department of Public Health, approximately one million Americans are diagnosed with shingles every year. It isn't life threatening, but the pain can be intense.

  1. Symptoms

    • Usually you will notice the symptoms of shingles on one side of your body. Symptoms you may suffer from include: burning, pain, numbness, tingling, a red rash, itching, and blisters filled with fluid that rupture and crust over. You may also notice that you have a fever, chills, headache, fatigue and general achiness. A shingles rash can pop up anywhere on the body, but you will usually notice a string of blisters that starts at the middle of your back and wraps around your chest to your breastbone.

    Causes

    • Anyone who had chickenpox as a child is at risk for developing shingles. This is because shingles is and chickenpox are caused by the same virus. After a bout with chickenpox, the virus stays dormant in your nervous system. Doctors aren't completely sure about why the virus reactivates and causes shingles, but it is believed that a weak immune system plays a big role.

    Diagnosis

    • Shingles usually goes away on its own within a few weeks, but you can pay a visit to your doctor to speed the healing and ease your pain. Your doctor should easily be able to diagnose shingles by looking at your rash and asking you about your symptoms. He may also need to analyze a tissue scraping or a culture of the blisters that make up your rash.

    Treatment

    • Certain anti-viral drugs such as Valtrex, Zovirax and Famvir can speed your healing if you receive them within 72 hours of noticing the rash. For the pain, your doctor may prescribe narcotics, anticonvulsants, tricyclic antidepressants or topical numbing medications.

    Prevention

    • There are two vaccines that can help prevent a shingles outbreak, Varivax and Zostavax. Zostavax is recommended for all adults over 60 years of age, regardless of previous shingles outbreaks. Shingles is contagious when the sores are in blister form, so stay clear of anyone you know that is suffering from it. Once the blisters have crusted over, the risk of giving it to someone else diminishes. However, it is a good idea to steer clear of anyone who has a shingles outbreak just to be safe, regardless of what stage they're in. If you absolutely must be in contact with someone who has a shingles rash, be sure that they have the rash covered.

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