What is Shingles?

Shingles is a disease that is often misunderstood by the public at large. Shingles is essentially a rash that is caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox in those who are not vaccinated. The Varicella zoster virus is the one that is responsible for both shingles and chickenpox. Only those who have been exposed to the virus can get shingles. Usually what happens is that after someone has had chickenpox the virus lives in a dormant status in their nervous system, as the virus is not one that is ever entirely removed from the body.

When the body is under stress, the individual has poor immunity, or in some cases for unknown reasons, the virus reactivates and this is shingles. Most people never know exactly why the virus was reactivated, but everyone who has ever had chickenpox can develop shingles at any time. There is an estimated one million cases of shingles every year in the United States alone with those being 60 years old and above at most risk.

Symptoms

The symptoms associated with shingles vary widely from patient to patient. Most patients report a burning feeling or tingling of the skin before there is any evidence of a rash. The pain is often severe, yet there may not be any rash to see or feel, which can be quite frustrating. The rash will usually appear first as a few small blisters on red skin, and then new blisters will form anywhere from three to five days. The blisters usually appear in areas that correspond to nerves, in a ray like pattern on the skin. An entire nerve may or may not be affected. Some people have just one nerve affected while others have several nerves or several layers of nerves affected. Some people experience intense pain that lasts for weeks and others experience only mild discomfort. The pain is usually greater for those who have more nerve space involved, although it is possible to have the pain without any blisters developing.

Eventually, the blisters will begin to pop and then ooze. The blisters will then crust and heal over. The time from the onset of symptoms until the blisters are healed is different for each patient, but may take two weeks to a month to heal completely. Shingles is contagious and is often spread from person to person, causing both shingles and chickenpox, in those who have not had it before. Shingles will continue to be contagious as long as there are new blisters forming and old blisters that have not completely healed. Once all of the blisters have crusted over and there are no new blisters forming, it is safe to come into contact with those who have not had the virus.