What are causes, symptoms & treatment of Shingles?-Dr. Sravya Tipirneni
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7 سال پیش
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Shingles is a common name
Shingles is a common name given to viral infection called Herpes Zoster. Now Herpes Zoster is an extremely painful blistering skin rash. It is caused due to reactivation of the varicella zoster virus or due to Human Herpes Virus type 3. Now anybody who has been exposed to chicken pox in their childhood can have a reactivation or an attack of shingles. What happens is when you have had your chicken pox during childhood or adulthood, this virus goes into the dorsal root ganglion and stays dormant. Under certain conditions or trigger factors or immunosuppressive conditions, this is reactivated and it is presented through the sensory nerve roots onto a particular area of the skin called as skin dermatomes. Now these dermatomes are cutaneous segments which have one dormant nerve each. So that is why Herpes Zoster usually presents as very painful, fluid filled vesicles on red base or inflamed skin, usually on one side and in one particular area, in the front and the back. This is called as dermatomal distribution. Now what happen is prior to the appearance of the blisters or the fluid filled lesions. The patients will have severe pain or burning sensation in that particular area. 1 to 3 days after this pain, he will look at the fluid filled blisters slowly appearing in a group pattern on that red area of skin. For some people it is extremely painful, for some people the pain is only moderate. Sometimes the patient also feels very weak and lethargic. Sometimes it is accompanied by fever and radiating pain on that side as well. Now the treatment for this antivirals, orally, mostly as well as antibiotic to prevent secondary infection of the fluid filled vesicle. The antiviral most commonly used is acyclovir and valcyclovir, most effective when started in the first 72 hours in the onset of the lesions. So you have to rush to a dermatologist as soon as you see the symptoms of red painful skin on one particular area, usually unilateral. Sometimes the severity of the lesions, the number of lesions and the extent of the disease itself can be brought down drastically just by starting acyclovir or valcyclovir, in the first 48 to 72. These lesions follow their own course over the next few weeks. They completely go down, they crust and dry and shed and fall off. The other complication to be taken care of is post herpetic neuralgia, which is radiating pain or shooting or throbbing pain in that particular area or radiating down in those dermatomes or a few weeks later as well. Mostly occurs in elderly patients, but can occur on the face as well. So this you can speak in detail with your dermatologist. You will be explained about it and there are medications that take care of that as well.
7 سال پیش
در تاریخ 1396/03/25 منتشر شده
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