I. Shingles also known as herpes zoster or zona is defined as a viral disease with condition of a painful, blistering skin rash on one side of the body of that can continue to be painful even after the rash have long disappeared(1), as a result of varicella-zoster viral causes of a nerve and skin inflammation.
II. Causes and risk factors
A, Risk factors
Although shingles can occur in anyone exposed to the varicella-zoster virus, people with
Advanced age and A weakened immune system are at increased risk of shingles and post
1. Advanced age
In the sane above study, Dr. Goh CL, and Dr. Khoo L. at the Institute of Dermatology, National Skin Center also said that pain was experienced by almost all (95) patients during the course of their disease. It tended to be more severe in older patients. Burning (26), stabbing (15), and shooting (15) pain were the most common types experienced. Post-herpetic neuralgia was significantly more common in older patients.(3)
2. Weakened immune system
Newborns, pregnant women, those over 50, and those with a weakened immune system (from another disease like HIV or cancer, for example), are more likely to be susceptible to the Varicella-Zoster virus as well as complications from either the Chicken Pox or Shingles.(5). Other report that Children infrequently are afflicted with herpes zoster (HZ). Activation of latent varicella-zoster virus (VZV) in a partially immune host results in HZ. Herpes zoster in children can be benign or with varied severity, especially in cases associated with malignancy. Because of its rarity, we report widespread multisegmental HZ primarily presenting on the right side of the body and abdomen in a 6-year-old immunocompetent girl.(6)
3. Etc.
B. Causes
Causes of Shingles is as a result of a nerve and skin inflammation with zoster virus (VZV). After having chickenpox, the virus lives dormant in the nervous system and is never fully cleared from the body. Under certain circumstances, such as weakened immune system, the virus travels up the nerve roots to the area of skin supplied by those specific nerve roots.
III. Stages of Shingles
Shingles can be classified in 5 stages
1. The First Shingles Stage: Chickenpox
People who has developed Chickenpox have an increased risk of shingles later in their life, as the virus can live dormant in the nervous system and is never fully cleared from the body. Dr. Welsby PD. at the Infectious Diseases Unit, Western General Hospital, Edinburgh EH4 2XU, UK. indicated that Chickenpox in the United Kingdom, where vaccination is not undertaken, has had a stable epidemiology for decades and is a routine childhood illness. In the UK vaccination is not done because introduction of a routine childhood vaccination might drive up the age at which those who are non-immune get the illness (chickenpox tends to be more severe the older you are), and the incidence of shingles may increase(7).
2. The Second Shingles Stage: Varicella-zoster viral Reactivation
Under certain circumstance, most of the time under weakened immune system as we age or other health conditions or as a result of other medication, the varicella virus can reactivate, triggering the development of shingles.
3. The Third Shingles Stage: Rash
This is the painful stage of shingle as in the earliest stages, patches of bumpy red blisters erupt on your skin and continue for 7 to 10 days.
4. The Fourth Shingles Stage: Crusting
After 7 to 10 days, the blisters begin to fall off that can lead to irregular skin pigmentation of which can be temporary but in severe cases it can be permanent.
5. The Fifth Shingles Stage: Postherpetic Neuralgia
Postherpetic neuralgia is the pain that lasts for more than a month after infection of shingles, but in some cases it can be last for months or years. The incidence of shingles increases with age and immunosuppression. Guidelines for managing shingles are now available and implementation, with the emphasis on early treatment, may reduce the severity of a shingles attack and reduce the incidence of complications.
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Sources can be found at http://medicaladvisorjournals.blogspot.ca/2012/05/shingles-herpes-zoster-or-zona-causes.html
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About the Author
I have been studying natural remedies for disease prevention for over 20 years and working as a financial consultant since 1990. Health Researcher and Article Writer. Master in Mathematics and BA in World Literature and Literary criticism
