\nShingles, also known as herpes zoster, is a viral infection that no one wants to deal with. The intense pain and rash are just the tip of the iceberg. We\u2019ll explain what shingles is, why it occurs, who is most likely to develop it, and how you can protect yourself or treat the condition.\n
Shingles is caused by the varicella-zoster virus, which is the same virus that causes chickenpox. If you\u2019ve had chickenpox at some point in your life, you should know that the virus hasn\u2019t completely gone away; it lies dormant in your nerve cells, waiting for an opportunity to reappear.\n
Sometimes, years later, when your immune system is weaker or under stress, it can reawaken as shingles, causing a painful, blistering rash.\n
\n
Who is at risk for shingles? Usually, people who have had chickenpox before. Among these, those most likely to develop the disease are:\n
\u2013 People with a weakened immune system (due to cancer, HIV, organ transplant recipients, or those undergoing chemotherapy).\n
\u2013 People over 50 years of age.\n
\u2013 People who have been ill.\n
\u2013 People who have suffered some type of trauma.\n
\u2013 People who are under stress.\n
Early symptoms of the disease include:\n
\u2013 Fever\n
\u2013 Chills\n
\u2013 Headache\n
\u2013 Fatigue\n
\u2013 Sensitivity to light\n
\u2013 Stomach upset\n
Other signs and symptoms that appear a few days after the first symptoms include:\n \u2013 A feeling of itching, tingling, or burning in an area of \u200b\u200bthe skin.\n \u2013 Redness of the skin in the affected area.\n \u2013 A raised rash on a small area of \u200b\u200bthe skin.\n \u2013 Fluid-filled blisters that rupture and then crust over.\n \u2013 Mild to severe pain in the affected area of \u200b\u200bskin.\n Shingles is more than just a painful rash. It can lead to serious complications, such as post-herpetic neuralgia, bacterial infections in the blisters, and in rare cases, nerve paralysis or even the spread of the virus to other parts of the body, such as the brain, lungs or liver.\n Prevention and treatment Although there is no definitive cure for shingles, there are treatments available to control its symptoms, for example:\n Antiviral medications\n These medications reduce discomfort and speed recovery from symptoms, especially if started within 72 hours of the first sign of shingles.\n They also reduce the risk of complications such as postherpetic neuralgia, which is persistent pain that appears after the rash has disappeared. Here are some antiviral medications:\n \u2013 Acyclovir The following medications are intended to relieve pain:\n \u2013 Paracetamol Other medications Is shingles contagious? If this happens, the infected person will not develop shingles, but rather chickenpox. Therefore, it is essential to take precautions to prevent transmission.\n If you have shingles, follow these recommendations:\n \u2013 Keep the rash well covered This way, you can help protect others and prevent the spread of the virus.\n \n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, is a viral infection that no one wants to deal with. The intense pain and rash are just the tip of the iceberg. We\u2019ll explain what shingles is, why it occurs, who is most likely to develop it, and how you can protect yourself or treat the condition. What\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":116488,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[404,410],"tags":[746],"class_list":{"0":"post-116485","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health-and-fitness","8":"category-life-hacks","9":"tag-hometips-lifehacks-health"},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/shingles.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=116485"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116485\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":116489,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/116485\/revisions\/116489"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/116488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=116485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=116485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thefinejournal.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=116485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Complications of Shingles\n
\nThe good news is that there is a vaccine to prevent the condition. The recombinant herpes zoster vaccine (RZV), known as Shingrix, significantly reduces the risk of developing the disease and its complications, according to the manufacturer.\n
\n\u2013 Famciclovir
\n\u2013 Valacyclovir
\n\u2013 Over-the-counter pain relievers\n
\n\u2013 Ibuprofen\n
\nIf there is a bacterial infection associated with the shingles rash, antibiotics are prescribed. In addition, anti-inflammatory medications, such as prednisone, are indicated if shingles affects areas such as the eyes or other parts of the face.\nWarning! Avoid self-medication. Seek medical attention.\n
\nWhile shingles is not contagious, the varicella-zoster virus is. If you have an active outbreak of shingles, you can pass the virus on to someone who has never had chickenpox or who has not been vaccinated against it.\n
\n\u2013 Wash your hands frequently
\n\u2013 And avoid close contact with people who are more vulnerable to the virus, such as infants, pregnant women, or individuals with weakened immune systems.\n