All three have a 7-day course if you have an uncomplicated case of shingles. Antiviral medications offer the most benefit for people over 50 and those who are immunocompromised, since these risk factors are associated with more persistent, severe shingles symptoms. Some people may need to take a longer course of antiviral medications or even be treated in the hospital with antivirals. This is more likely if you have the following:.
Some people experience shingles on the face. This can lead to serious complications, such as :. Mild shingles pain may improve with over-the-counter anti-inflammatory medications.
Your doctor may recommend ibuprofen or acetaminophen or weak opioids , such as codeine or tramadol. Stronger prescription opioid pain medication, such as hydrocodone, may be prescribed to treat moderate to severe shingles pain. Another option is topical pain relievers , such as lidocaine. These are applied directly to your skin for relief.
You can find topical pain relievers as ointments, creams, gels, sprays, or patches. Capsaicin , which comes in a cream or a patch, may also be helpful. Shingix recombinant zoster vaccine is currently the only shingles vaccine available in the United States. Previously, an additional vaccine, Zostavax, was used, but it was phased out in the United States as of November According to the CDC, two doses of Shingrix are over 90 percent effective at preventing shingles.
If you get shingles after being vaccinated, your symptoms will likely be less severe. Shingles usually follows a pattern of development. It typically progresses with the following symptoms:. In some cases, pain may persist for several months or even years after the rash has disappeared.
This complication, known as postherpetic neuralgia PHN , can be severe enough to affect your quality of life. Certain antiseizure medications can help manage the pain. Gabapentin and pregabalin are two that are commonly used. Getting shingles three times is extremely rare. Shingles occurs when the varicella-zoster virus is reactivated due to a weakened immune system. This can create a painful, blistering rash. Most cases of shingles last around two to four weeks.
Read more about treating shingles. Shingles can sometimes lead to complications, such as postherpetic neuralgia. This is where severe nerve pain lasts for several months or more after the rash has gone. Complications such as this are usually in elderly people who have had the condition and those with a weakened immune system.
Read more about the complications of shingles. It's not always possible to prevent shingles, but a vaccine called Zostavax can reduce your chances of developing the condition.
If you still develop shingles after having this vaccine, it may be milder and last for a shorter time than usual. Read more about shingles vaccination.
This vaccine's now routinely offered in Scotland as a single injection to people aged Some cases of shingles can affect one of the eyes and are known as ophthalmic shingles. This occurs when the virus is reactivated in part of the trigeminal nerve, a nerve that controls sensation and movement in your face.
An episode of shingles typically lasts around two to four weeks. The main symptoms are pain, followed by a rash. Any part of your body can be affected, including your face and eyes, although the chest and abdomen tummy are the most common areas where shingles develops. In some cases, shingles may cause some early prodromal symptoms that develop a few days before the painful rash first appears.
Not everyone will experience these prodromal symptoms. A high temperature is particularly uncommon. Eventually, most people with shingles experience a localised "band" of pain in the affected area.
The pain can be a constant, dull or burning sensation and its intensity can vary from mild to severe. Pain is less common in young healthy people and is rare in children. It usually starts a few days before the rash appears and can remain for a few days or weeks after the rash has healed.
The shingles rash usually appears on one side of your body and develops on the area of skin related to the affected nerve. Initially, the shingles rash appears as red blotches on your skin before developing into itchy blisters similar in appearance to chickenpox. Scabs then form where the blisters were, which may leave some slight scarring. It usually takes two to four weeks for the rash to heal completely.
Shingles is not usually serious, but you should see your GP as soon as possible if you recognise the symptoms. You should also see your GP if you are pregnant or have a weakened immune system the body's natural defence system and you think you have been exposed to someone with chickenpox or shingles and haven't had chickenpox before. Shingles is caused by the reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus, which is the virus that causes chickenpox. After you have had chickenpox , the varicella-zoster virus lies dormant inactive inside your body.
It can become reactivated at a later stage and cause shingles. It is not known exactly why the virus is reactivated, but it is linked to having lowered immunity protection against infection and diseases. Your immunity to illness and infection can become lowered if there is a problem with your immune system the body's natural defence system. This can happen as a result of:. It is not possible to catch shingles from someone else with the condition, or from someone with chickenpox.
However, it is possible for someone who has never had chickenpox to catch it from someone with shingles, as the shingles blisters contains the live virus. In the UK, chickenpox is so common during childhood that 9 out of 10 adults have already had it and will not be at risk from someone with shingles.
The blisters that develop as a result of shingles contain virus particles. If you have not had chickenpox before, you can catch it from direct contact with the fluid from the blisters of someone who has shingles, or from something that has the fluid on it, such as bed sheets or a towel. If you have shingles, you are contagious until the last blister has scabbed over. This will usually occur after about 10 to 14 days. If you have the shingles rash, do not share towels or flannels, go swimming, or play contact sports.
This will help prevent the virus being passed on to someone who has not had chickenpox. You should also avoid work or school if your rash is weeping oozing fluid and cannot be covered. Once your blisters have dried and scabbed over, you are no longer contagious and will not need to avoid anyone. Your GP or pharmacist will normally be able to diagnose shingles from your symptoms and the appearance of your rash.
Testing is not usually necessary. It is uncommon for someone with shingles to be referred to a specialist for further assessment and treatment, but your GP may consider seeking specialist advice or referring you if:. You may also be referred to a specialist if you have an unusually persistent case of suspected shingles that is not responding to treatment, or if you have been diagnosed with the condition more than twice. There is no cure for shingles, but treatment can help ease your symptoms until the condition improves.
In many cases, shingles gets better within around two to four weeks. However, it's still important to see your GP or pharmacist as soon as possible if you recognise the symptoms of shingles, as early treatment may help reduce the severity of the condition and the risk of potential complications. Most people who develop shingles have only one episode during their lifetime. However, you can have shingles more than once. If you have shingles, direct contact with the fluid from your rash blisters can spread VZV to people who have never had chickenpox or never received the chickenpox vaccine.
If they get infected, they will develop chickenpox, not shingles. They could then develop shingles later in life. The risk of spreading VZV to others is low if you cover the shingles rash. People with shingles cannot spread the virus before their rash blisters appear or after the rash crusts.
Also see Treating Shingles. These signs and symptoms may include:. Pain is usually the first symptom of shingles. For some, it can be intense. Depending on the location of the pain, it can sometimes be mistaken for a symptom of problems affecting the heart, lungs or kidneys.
Some people experience shingles pain without ever developing the rash. Most commonly, the shingles rash develops as a stripe of blisters that wraps around either the left or right side of your torso. Sometimes the shingles rash occurs around one eye or on one side of the neck or face. Contact your doctor promptly if you suspect shingles, but especially in the following situations:. The shingles rash is associated with an inflammation of nerves beneath the skin.
Anyone who's had chickenpox may develop shingles. After you recover from chickenpox, the virus enters your nervous system and lies dormant for years. Eventually, it may reactivate and travel along nerve pathways to your skin — producing shingles. But, not everyone who's had chickenpox will develop shingles.
The reason for shingles is unclear. But it may be due to lowered immunity to infections as you grow older. Shingles is more common in older adults and in people who have weakened immune systems. Varicella-zoster is part of a group of viruses called herpes viruses, which includes the viruses that cause cold sores and genital herpes. Because of this, shingles is also known as herpes zoster. But the virus that causes chickenpox and shingles is not the same virus responsible for cold sores or genital herpes, a sexually transmitted infection.
A person with shingles can pass the varicella-zoster virus to anyone who isn't immune to chickenpox. This usually occurs through direct contact with the open sores of the shingles rash. Once infected, the person will develop chickenpox, however, not shingles.
0コメント