If you have not had chickenpox, you
have no worry about having shingles or herpes zoster. If you are one
of the people that has had chickenpox, then please consider obtaining
the vaccination for herpes zoster if your are age 60 or older.
Anyone that has recovered from chickenpox may develop shingles; even
children can get shingles. However, the risk of disease increases as
a person gets older. About half of all cases occur among men and
women 60 years old or older.
People who have medical conditions that
keep their immune systems from working properly, such as certain
cancers, including leukemia and lymphoma, and human immunodeficiency
virus (HIV), and people who receive immunosuppressive drugs, such as
steroids and drugs given after organ transplantation are at greater
risk of getting shingles. People who develop shingles typically have
only one episode in their lifetime. In rare cases, however, a person
can have a second or even a third episode.
Shingles occurs when the virus that
causes chickenpox starts up again in your body. After you get better
from chickenpox, the virus is dormant in your nerve roots. In some
people, it stays dormant forever. In others, the virus "wakes
up" when disease, stress, or aging weakens the immune system.
Some medicines may trigger the virus to wake up and cause a shingles
rash. It is not clear why this happens, but after the virus becomes
active again, it can only cause shingles, not chickenpox.
Shingles is only contagious during the
time when the rash is in the blister-phase. A person is not
infectious before blisters appear. Once the rash has developed
crusts, the person is no longer contagious. You are unable to catch
shingles from someone that has shingles. They can only spread the
virus to another person who has never had chickenpox and who has not
had the chickenpox vaccination.
Often the rash occurs in a single
stripe around either the left or right side of the body. The rash
can occur on one side of the face. Less often, the rash may be more
widespread and look similar to a chickenpox rash (normally among
people with a weakened immune system). The dangerous part of
shingles is when it affects the eye and this can cause loss of
vision.
Other symptoms of shingles can include
fever, headache, chills, and upset stomach. If you have shingles,
keep the rash covered, do not touch or scratch the rash, and wash
your hands often to prevent the spread of the varicella zoster virus.
Until your rash has developed crusts, avoid contact with pregnant
women who have never had chickenpox or varicella zoster virus. Also,
avoid contact with all children and anyone having a condition in the
second paragraph above.
If shingles develops a complication,
this is called postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). People with PHN have
severe pain in the areas where they had the shingles rash, even after
the rash clears up. This pain from PHN may be severe and
debilitating, but it usually resolves in a few weeks or months in
most patients. PHN can, however, persists for many years in some
persons. The older you become the more likely you are to develop
PHN. Occasionally shingles can lead to pneumonia, hearing problems,
blindness, brain inflammation, or death.
This is a good reason to have the
shingles vaccine (Zostavax®). This was recommended by the Advisory
Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) in 2006 to reduce the risk
of shingles and its associated pain in people age 60 years and older.
Your risk for developing shingles
increases as you age. The vaccine is currently recommended for
persons 60 years of age and older. Even people who have had shingles
can receive the vaccine to help prevent future occurrences of the
disease.
Shingles vaccine is available in
pharmacies and doctor's offices. Talk with your healthcare provider
if you have questions about shingles vaccine.
