Coping with SHINGLES

This viral herpes infection causes a painful rash and itchy blisters

The first signs of shingles include a tingling or painful feeling in an area of skin, headache or feeling generally unwell. After a few days a rash may appear, usually in a stripe around one side of the chest or abdomen, but it can appear anywhere on your body, including on your face, eyes and genitals. The rash starts as blotchy patches, which develop into itchy blisters that ooze fluid. A few days later, the blisters dry out and scab, but may last several weeks.

The skin may remain painful after the rash goes. If the shingles rash is on your face, around your eye or ear, see your doctor, as it needs to be checked by an eye specialist because it could damage your sight.

Shingles is caused by the chickenpox virus, varicella zoster, within you. When you have chickenpox, the virus moves to live in the brain or spinal nerves. A later trigger, such as reduced immunity, stress, infection or other illness, prompts the virus to return into one spinal nerve and come out in the skin supplied by that nerve, although it’s not known why. You cannot get shingles from someone with shingles or chickenpox.

You cannot spread it to others, but people who have not had chickenpox before could catch it from the virus present in the shingles blisters.

So, avoid vulnerable people, such as the elderly or those

with weakened immune systems, on immune-suppressant medication or chemotherapy, pregnant women who have not had chickenpox before, and babies less than one month old, unless you gave birth to them, as your baby should be protected from the virus by your immune system. If you’re pregnant and get shingles, there’s no danger to your pregnancy or baby, but you should be referred to a specialist, as you may need antiviral treatment.

Shingles isn’t usually life-threatening, but can be very painful. See your doctor, who can prescribe antiviral medication

such as Aciclovir, which is best taken as early as possible to shorten the course of the illness and reduce the risk of longstanding nerve pain called post-herpetic neuralgia.

A shingles vaccine is available on the NHS for people in their 70s, which helps reduce your risk of shingles and, if you do get it, makes the symptoms much milder. You will get an NHS letter inviting you to have the vaccine, but ask your doctor if you don’t receive one.