Shingles: What triggers this painful, burning rash?

If you’re like 95% of American adults, you had chickenpox as a kid. Before the United States started its widespread vaccination program in 1995, there were roughly four million cases of chickenpox every year. So, most people suffered through an infection with this highly contagious virus and its itchy, whole-body rash. But unlike many childhood viruses, the varicella-zoster virus that causes chickenpox doesn’t clear from the body when the illness ends. Instead it hangs around, taking up residence and lying dormant in the nerves, sometimes for decades, with the immune system holding it in check. In some people, it lives there harmlessly for the rest of their life. But in others, the virus can suddenly emerge and strike again, this time appearing as a different condition known as shingles. What are the symptoms of shingles? Like chickenpox, shingles also causes a blistering rash, but this time it generally appears as a painful band around one side of your ribcage or on one side of your face. The first symptom for many people is pain or a burning sensation in the affected area. You may also have fever, a headache, and fatigue. Along with the rash and other temporary symptoms, shingles can also bring unpleasant, long-lasting, and sometimes permanent complications, such as skin infections, nerve pain in the area where the rash appeared, or even vision loss. What triggers shingles in some people and not others? Experts don’t fully understand this. One theory is that shingles ...
Source: Harvard Health Blog - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Health Healthy Aging Skin and Hair Care Vaccines Source Type: blogs