Herpes zoster

Herpes zoster - a disease resulting from the activation of the virus, which has remained in the body after undergoing prior varicella. The disease is characterized by fever, general intoxication, the appearance of pain and rash bubble along the sensory nerves.
Cause. Sick persons in the nervous system that varicella zoster virus persists for life. The disease affects people of middle and old age.
Patients with herpes zoster contagious for persons who have had chicken pox, which occurs in them after contact.
The process of developing the disease. With the weakening of immunity with age or under heavy disease chickenpox virus is activated and causes inflammation of the nerves, in which he was.
On the sensitive nerves it spreads in the skin and mucous membranes, which also develops inflammation.
Signs. The disease begins acutely with fever and sharply expressed the burning pain, itching at the site of future eruptions. Localization of pain corresponds to the affected nerve (usually intercostal) and has a one-sided nature of herpes. Pain sometimes become unbearable, worse at the slightest touch to the skin, movement, cooling.
After 3-4 days the skin at the site of the pain becomes red and it appears a few grouped blisters filled with clear and then cloudy contents. With the advent of pain skin rash usually become less intense, but every second patient concerned up to 1 month. After 3-5 days blisters dry up and become scabs.
The total duration of the disease is 7-10 days. However, with a significant decrease in immunity disease it is more severe and prolonged.
If the process involves the cranial nerves, the pain and the rash can be on the face, on the mucous membranes of the eyes, nose, ear, in the ear canal.
Complications. Almost 10% of patients with herpes zoster pain in the affected area persists for more than 1 month. In some patients it occurs again within a year after the disease.
Recognition of the disease. The emergence of bubble rash sided with pains in the course of the intercostal space allows you to immediately put this diagnosis.
Treatment. All patients with herpes zoster, as soon as possible, should start treatment at an infectious disease specialist who prescribe treatment, effective in the first days of the onset of rash. All of them, especially those under 20 years must be examined in order to establish the causes of low immunity. In the case of severe illness or in the presence of a child or a pregnant family without a history of chickenpox, the patient should be sent to the infectious diseases hospital.
Prevention of disease. Healthy lifestyle.