What is Shingles?
Shingles is a viral infection caused by the varicella zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. The chickenpox virus lays dormant or “sleeps” in our systems, and can be woken by things including stress, aging, a weakened immune system or medications. It is a very common virus, affecting one out of every three people in the U.S., and that risk increases to one in two between the ages of 60 and 80 years.
Signs of Shingles
Shingles usually affects only one side of the body, and can be found in any place where we have “dermatomes,” or nerve endings under the skin. It usually starts as an itchy or painful rash and develops into a blistery rash. The virus can make you feel sick with a headache, sensitivity to light and achiness. In some cases, the pain from a shingles rash can be very intense. Early diagnosis might make antiviral medications an option, which might help shorten the duration of the shingles infection and prevent further complications.
An important question that people always ask is how do you get shingles?. In order to get shingles, you have to have had the chickenpox. If you have had chickenpox, you cannot contract shingles by exposure to someone else who has it. If you have not had chickenpox, you should try to avoid contact with someone who has shingles, since the fluid from the blisters is infectious and you can develop chickenpox as a result of that contact.
Whether you’ve had shingles or not, if you are over the age of 60 the Centers for Disease Control recommends that you get the shingles vaccine (Zostavax) to protect your body from the reactivation of the chickenpox virus. Although it is possible some people will still develop shingles after receiving the vaccine, in those cases it may help reduce the severity and duration of shingles. The shingles vaccine is a live vaccine, with minor reported side effects; however, there are situations in which the vaccine is not recommended. Be sure to speak with your doctor about receiving the shingles vaccine.
