What Can I Do For Shingles Pain

The pain of shingles is for many people quite striking in its severity.

What can i do for shingles pain. Roughly 30 to 60 of people over age 60 who get shingles go on to develop a chronic pain syndrome called post herpetic neuralgia. Pain is usually the first symptom of shingles. The main symptoms are pain followed by a rash. Shingles recovery tends to follow a pattern and may take anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks or more.

Any part of your body can be affected including your face and eyes although the chest and abdomen tummy are the most common areas where shingles develops. For some it can be intense. Learn about treatment options from a pain management specialist. If your shingles pain lasts eight to 12 weeks after the rash goes away you re part of an unfortunate minority says pain researcher andrew s c.

Some people develop complications after shingles including nerve pain called post herpetic neuropathy. Shingles causes a painful rash that can be accompanied by fever fatigue and sensitivity to light. Shingles also known as herpes zoster results from a reactivation of infection with the varicella zoster virus that causes chickenpox anyone who has had chickenpox may develop shingles later in life although it is most common in older people. Depending on the location of the pain it can sometimes be mistaken for a symptom of problems affecting the heart lungs or kidneys.

Some people experience shingles pain without ever developing the rash. Your doctor may also take a tissue scraping or culture of the blisters for examination in the laboratory. Shingles a viral infection of the nerve roots affects 1 million people in the u s each year. Shingles is usually diagnosed based on the history of pain on one side of your body along with the telltale rash and blisters.

Pneumonia and brain inflammation are possible. Shingles can appear many years after the initial chickenpox infection. Rice md of imperial college london. While antiviral medication is an effective treatment for shingles it s not the only option.

Shingles can affect the brain spinal cord and blood vessels but it s rare. An episode of shingles typically lasts around two to four weeks.