Shingles (disease) question

[mattpegher]

Ive never had chicken pox and I got a blood test to make sure of it. No sign of the anti bodies but from reading about the risk of vaccine I decided against it. You can get pox and or die just from the vaccine.. F that!

You have a better chance of hitting the lottery for billions than dieing from the vaccine, the chance of getting an actual case of chicken pox is less than 1:10000. The most anyone usually gets is a slight flu-ish feeling for a day or two

 

[busydude]

I had a roommate who suffered from shingles. It lasted couple of months and affected few nerves on the back of his neck. Fortunately.. he made it through, but he suffered a lot.

 

[MtnMan]

Ive never had chicken pox and I got a blood test to make sure of it. No sign of the anti bodies but from reading about the risk of vaccine I decided against it. You can get pox and or die just from the vaccine.. F that!

How much was the blood test, was it covered as part of the normal "blood work"?

 

[highland145]

What differentiates Shingles from Chicken Pox is localization of the sores into a dermatome (i.e. a localized area innervated by a spinal nerve). This is why the aftermath of untreated shingles is horrible neuropathic pain.

Thanks.

 

[destrekor]

Shingles vaccine is indicated for people over 50... if she has eruptions only over a localized area of her body (i.e. a strip or line over her back or abdomen) then she needs medical attention NOW.

EDIT: and you as well to be safe,

If it's localized and visible in the body, that's usually pretty good for zoster. If you're going to get a latent activation, you want it to be visible and localized. Don't promote fear by stating "needs medical attention NOW" when that's blowing it out of proportions at this point.
If unbearable pain (at the rash/activation region) and other neurological symptoms crop up, it's good to get to a doctor. The more severe, the more important. But it's also quite possible to have a small rash cluster, minimal pain, and it's gone in a couple weeks.
React based on apparent emergency - don't bother if it seems mild.


If you seem to be getting unbearable pain in the head/neck, and other strange phenomenon, such as possibly flu-like symptoms along with that head/neck pain, get to a doctor stat. Being located on the nerve bundles, zoster can find its way into the large parts of the CNS, such as spine and neck.
"Shingles" can be activated just about anywhere, but if you find it on a small patch of the body, that's preferable to other locations, like the retina or brain. It CAN lead to some serious complications, but symptoms present themselves accordingly. Listen to your body, and you'll know if the virus kept itself to a "good" part of the body or went somewhere it most certainly shouldn't have went. Such serious cases of zoster are not nearly as common as some people might lead you to believe, it's more often not that pervasive and more benign, like a small cluster of blisters, and they may or may not hurt.

<---- board certified Emergency Medicine and Internal Medicine for 20 yrs
First- shingles is very contagious, while a person has open sores they are shedding virus by respiratory droplets. You do not have to touch a lesion.
Second - in addition to avoiding adults that have never had the chickenpox or the vaccine (started giving it routinely to children about 1997), the most susceptable encounters are with pregnant females. If a fetus comes in contact, the mothers immune system may not prevent transmission, and intrauterine herpes zoster infections can lead to brain damage.
third- If I were you, I'd get a Varicella vaccine ASAP. If you get chicken pox - see a doctor to confirm the diagnosis and start anti-viral therapy. Unfortunately, there is no data to prove anti-viral therapy can prevent transmission, but if the disease starts it will be best to get on it asap.

Shingles should rarely be found in the lungs/respiratory system.

Almost all medical sites back me up on this: contact with sores is the only way to "catch" the virus from someone with an active shingles "rash."
It is possible to spread through the air, but it seems like a very rare case for it to be found in the lungs.
Shingles isn't a whole-body infection or at all related to typical fluid-borne pathogens in the body - it's basically a localized activation of latent virus that is sitting on ganglia somewhere on the body, "activated" by spreading along axiom toward the skin.

 

[mattpegher]

wooo update, just talked to my mom and evidently I had chickenpox when I was so small I don't remember.

@mattpegher, does this change anything?

Yes, your probably immune. At the worst you might feel a slight flu and get a pox or two. It is highly unlikely that you dont have some immunity left from the disease.

 

[BoomerD]

You old farts can't take chances. Git 'er done.


Aw, hell. Approaching old fart stage at the speed of light.:$

 

[destrekor]

What differentiates Shingles from Chicken Pox is localization of the sores into a dermatome (i.e. a localized area innervated by a spinal nerve). This is why the aftermath of untreated shingles CAN BE horrible neuropathic pain.

ftfy

Shingles can be managed, not treated, and it's still a rare case for it to result in lifelong neurological issues. It's possible, yes, but far from guaranteed.


here are some good sites with information:
http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/shingles/detail_shingles.htm
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/shingles/DS00098/DSECTION=complications
http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/shingles/shingles-symptoms

PHN (long-lasting pain) is the "most common complication" - still doesn't mean it is common to have this complication.

In short, if in doubt, see a doctor. I'd never argue otherwise, and to do so would be foolish. Calling up a doctor and asking never hurts.
But if you see a rash, and it's localized (one side of body, specific region on that side), and it isn't causing an immense amount of pain, there should be little to worry about in terms of complications. Severe pain can induce nerve damage if the virus activation isn't managed promptly, so if it gets to that point, go immediately (my non-medical opinion) - but otherwise, home remedies will probably be good enough.
If you see the physical symptoms of an illness like zoster, that can be considered a good thing. To go into fear-monger mode: blindness is a complication of an optic nerve zoster activation, and there is a laundry list of possible complications from encephalitis (brain swelling) or meningitis (swelling of the meninges, aka the "protective coating" of the brain/spinal cord).

 

[Ns1]

Yes, your probably immune. At the worst you might feel a slight flu and get a pox or two. It is highly unlikely that you dont have some immunity left from the disease.

thanks!

 

[Rockinacoustic]

ftfy

Shingles can be managed, not treated, and it's still a rare case for it to result in lifelong neurological issues. It's possible, yes, but far from guaranteed.

Thanks for the correction (I learn disease states from a treatment approach, not a diagnostic approach in my field).

I urged medical attention from merely a preventative standpoint, not to cause hysteria.

 

[Meghan54]

What differentiates Shingles from Chicken Pox is localization of the sores into a dermatome (i.e. a localized area innervated by a spinal nerve). This is why the aftermath of untreated shingles is horrible neuropathic pain.

Even treated, you can still end up with neurologic pain. Had shingle outbreak myself about 6 years ago and the area where it first broke out (on my L shoulder) continues to have neuro pain to this day, esp. when I use the L arm---heavy lifting, pounding in nails, etc.

Hell, it still sometimes wakes me up from sleep, it still hurts that badly some days.

Sucks to catch it.....

 

[mattpegher]

Shingles should rarely be found in the lungs/respiratory system.

Almost all medical sites back me up on this: contact with sores is the only way to "catch" the virus from someone with an active shingles "rash."
It is possible to spread through the air, but it seems like a very rare case for it to be found in the lungs.
Shingles isn't a whole-body infection or at all related to typical fluid-borne pathogens in the body - it's basically a localized activation of latent virus that is sitting on ganglia somewhere on the body, "activated" by spreading along axiom toward the skin.

Although you are correct, in an immunocompetent patient the risk of respiratory transmission is low unless signs of systemic spread are present, the consequences of transmission in Zoster naive patient esp interuterine is dire. Therefore standard precautions in health care workers is not to allow pregnant women or women who may be pregnant to take care of shingle. For Health care workers who are not pregnant who's titre is absent, treating a patient with zoster is ok but not primary varicella (chicken pox).

The risk is low but the CDC recommends that all shingles patients avoid pregnant females.

 

[destrekor]

Although you are correct, in an immunocompetent patient the risk of respiratory transmission is low unless signs of systemic spread are present, the consequences of transmission in Zoster naive patient esp interuterine is dire. Therefore standard precautions in health care workers is not to allow pregnant women or women who may be pregnant to take care of shingle. For those who's titre is absent, treating a patient with zoster is ok but not primary varicella (chicken pox).

The risk is low but the CDC recommends that all shingles patients avoid pregnant females.

Well that's a good approach, regardless of actual risk - pregnant women most certainly need to take great care to avoid the passing of pathogens to their fetus... there is a lot of risk. And sometimes you never know just how much other people have touched or how infectious particles found their way somewhere.

 

[unokitty]

Apparently, there is a wide variation in individual shingle cases.

I had mine in my mid/late 20s. It was localized to my upper right back and shoulder.

While I saw a doctor, I don't recall any specific treatment other than putting calamine lotion on the affected areas. (This would have been early 70s.)

The blisters kind of sucked... But it didn't interfere with my schooling or motorcycle riding or anything. While it was uncomfortable for a few weeks, I never had any significant pain.

Then again at that time, I was just two years out of the Army... And not having to spend nights in the jungle walking a Sentry Dog along a perimeter road seemed like a pretty sweet life. Especially when it rained.

Best of luck,
Uno

 

[mattpegher]

Apparently, there is a wide variation in individual shingle cases.

I had mine in my mid/late 20s. It was localized to my upper right back and shoulder.

While I saw a doctor, I don't recall any specific treatment other than putting calamine lotion on the affected areas. (This would have been early 70s.)

The blisters kind of sucked... But it didn't interfere with my schooling or motorcycle riding or anything. While it was uncomfortable for a few weeks, I never had any significant pain.

Then again at that time, I was just two years out of the Army... And not having to spend nights in the jungle walking a Sentry Dog along a perimeter road seemed like a pretty sweet life. Especially when it rained.

Best of luck,
Uno

I dont think we had any anti-herpetic therapies in the early 70's, acyclovir was not released until 1982.

 

[JTsyo]

Isn't that a routine vaccine these days?

Edit: Sine 2005.

Yup, there's a vaccine and sine (2005 radians) = 0.61618292, next time do you own homework.

 

[highland145]

Yup, there's a vaccine and sine (2005 radians) = 0.61618292, next time do you own homework.

Busted. Now can I have the car keys and $100?

 

[rudder]

wooo update, just talked to my mom and evidently I had chickenpox when I was so small I don't remember.

@mattpegher, does this change anything?

I had chicken pox in the 2nd grade. Got the shingles when I was 17.... you are still fucked.

 

[Ns1]

I had chicken pox in the 2nd grade. Got the shingles when I was 17.... you are still fucked.

 

[SphinxnihpS]

Stance of dominance and a scotch neat should keep you in the clear.

 

[destrekor]

I had chicken pox in the 2nd grade. Got the shingles when I was 17.... you are still fucked.

Well that's how it works.

If you've had chicken pox at some point, that means you may, at some point in the future, get the bonus round called shingles. It's simply the reactivation of the virus that has gone dormant in some nerve clusters.

If you've had chicken pox, you cannot "catch" anything from someone with shingles - 99% of the time, anyway. Sometimes, you can get chicken pox AGAIN - just because nature is cruel like that. If you are capable of getting chicken pox again, you may get them from someone who has an active case of shingles. But you cannot get "shingles" from someone else. If you get shingles, you effectively got it from yourself.

So, if the OP has in fact had chicken pox, and can get away with not getting chicken pox from his GF, he isn't entirely out of the clear. Tomorrow, a month later, 30 years from now, or never... he may get shingles on his own.

 

[lokiju]

I had Shingles when I was 16 years old. Sucked, hurt like a mofo, but after soaking in oatmeal baths a few times it greatly improved.

I was banished from school for a solid week though, guess it's pretty contagious.

 

[Pray To Jesus]

jUST GO GET VACINNATED

 

[Krazy4Real]

I had chicken pox in the 2nd grade. Got the shingles when I was 17.... you are still fucked.

Yup, I got chicken pox when I was young and shingles later in life too, around 19 or 20 I think. Ugh, shingles are not fun times.

 

[Ns1]

So, if the OP has in fact had chicken pox, and can get away with not getting chicken pox from his GF, he isn't entirely out of the clear. Tomorrow, a month later, 30 years from now, or never... he may get shingles on his own.

Thanks.


Also, confirmed case of shingles w/ the GF. She needs to stay away from children, old people, and sick people...