Shingles, popularly known as shingles, is an infectious disease caused by the same chickenpox virus, which could recur in adulthood causing a red blister on the skin, and can appear anywhere on the body such as face, chest and arms, this could also affect the eyes and ears.
This disease only affects people with chickenpox, but most of them appear after age 60 and are treated with the use of antiviral medications such as aciclovir, as well as appropriate pain relievers by your doctor to relieve pain caused by wounds. Skin.
Signs and symptoms characteristic of shingles include
The diagnosis of herpes zoster is usually based on the clinical evaluation of the signs and symptoms that the person presents, as well as on the observation of skin lesions. These symptoms of shingles can also occur in other conditions such as impetigo, contact dermatitis, herpetiformis dermatitis, and herpes simplex, and because of this diagnosis, it should be done by a doctor.
Shingles is a contagious disease for people who have never had chickenpox, who have not been vaccinated but are diseases caused by the same virus. For example, children or others who have never had chickenpox should stay away from people with shingles, such as in direct contact with their clothes, wipes, or towels. Learn more about shingles infection.
People who have chickenpox when they come into contact with a person with shingles are protected and usually do not develop the disease.
Shingles can recur at any time in people who have had chickenpox, sometimes due to the virus, remains dormant, so to speak, inactive in the body for many years, since in case of a failure of the immune system, the virus can replicate again, causing shingles.
Those most at risk of developing shingles are those over the age of 60; autoimmune diseases such as AIDS and lupus; undergo chemotherapy or for prolonged corticosteroid treatment.
However, shingles can also occur in adults who are overweight and recover from diseases such as severe flu or dengue, as the immune system weakens in these situations, so strengthening the immune system could be a good strategy to prevent its onset. .
Treatment of shingles is done with the use of antiviral medications, such as aciclovir, fanciclovir, valaciclovir to reduce the multiplication of the virus, decrease blisters, duration and intensity of the disease, it may also be necessary to use painkillers to relieve the pain caused. Injury The doctor may return the call:
However, it is important to follow your doctor’s instructions, which may indicate a different dose and for another period if deemed necessary.
A good treatment to complement the treatment indicated by your doctor is to strengthen the immune system by eating echinacea and consuming lysine-rich foods. See more in the video below:
In addition, precautions should be taken during treatment, such as
It is important to remember that to be more effective, treatment should begin as soon as injuries occur.
See other home remedy options for shingles.
The complication of shingles is postherpetic neuralgia, which is the continuation of pain for several weeks or months after the disappearance of blisters on the skin; this complication is more common in people over the age of 60 and is characterized by severe pain than in the period when inheritances are active, as the person remains at rest and has no ability to continue their normal activities.
Another less common complication, when the virus reaches the eye, causes inflammation of the cornea and vision problems, in these cases an evaluation by an ophthalmologist is important to indicate the most deficient treatment.
Other rarer problems than shingles can cause, depending on the affected region, sound problems, hearing, blindness in the brain, for example, and only in extremely rare cases, usually in older people and with a weakened immune system, this disease. could cause the disease.