Shingles (Herpes Zoster)
A painful skin rash with blisters in a limited area on one side of the body (left or right), often in a stripe.
SymptomsTreatmentsPreventionAbout Shingles
Anyone who has already had chicken pox is at risk of developing shingles later on in life. Both are caused by the same virus, the varicella–zoster virus. This virus stays dormant in the body after a chicken pox infection, but can become active again years later and trigger shingles (also called herpes zoster). It causes an often very painful rash with blisters that usually forms a band across the skin, but normally only affects one side of the body.
It is still possible for people who have been vaccinated against chicken pox to get shingles. But it is estimated that this is not as common as developing it after you have had chicken pox.
Shingles is quite common in older people especially. It can be very unpleasant, but is usually over in about two to four weeks as long as there are no complications… Read more about Shingles