What You Need To Know About Shingles Pain
Article by Matthew Cullen
Doctors say the “creepy-crawly” shingles pain is far worse than the tell-tale abdominal bands of scabs. This inflammation and chronic nerve pain can linger for months or even years following the re-emergence of the varicella zoster virus. Karl R. Beutner MD, PhD, of the University of California at San Francisco explains, “There have been quality-of-life studies showing that a bad case of shingles is worse than a heart attack in terms of how long the pain lasts.”
The very first symptom of the chickenpox virus reactivation is often a burning feeling on the nerve paths where the virus is traveling. Because the nerve paths are arranged in semi circles around the body, the burning, itching, tingling pain takes place on only one side of your face, chest or abdomen. Within the first 24 hours, patients will experience a fever and enlarged lymph nodes. In 48-72 hours, the skin rash appears, appearing as compact blisters on top of puffy, red skin. In comparison with chickenpox, which spreads all over the body from the tips of the fingers to the toes, shingles are confined to smaller areas on the face, abdomen and chest.
Following three to five days, the rash has peaked and is now commencing to open, turn into sores and bit by bit scab over. After two to three weeks, the scabs fall off, leaving the skin to mend. For most people, the rash region is extremely painful for weeks or months when the scabs have left. Something as simple as having a shirt touch your skin can cause waves of nerve pain to radiate throughout the body.
Shingles pain is often much worse than it needs to be because many patients don’t get to the doctor soon enough for antiviral therapy. Dr. Karl Beutner explains: “On the first day they have a little back pain, and then on the second day they notice a little rash and think maybe it’s a spider bite. On day three, they notice more pain and the rash gets worse, so they call the doctor and maybe get in on day six or day seven.” However, the most effective treatments are administered 48-72 hours after the onset of shingles symptoms, he says. So just when should patients call a doctor? Beutner says, “If you have pain, and then a rash, that’s an important signal. There are very few other rashes that are actually painful. If you have a painful, blistering rash, that means you need to get in to the doctor sooner rather than later.”
The US Food and Drug administration just approved a new drug aimed at treating shingles pain. The Quentza patch delivers a synthetic form of the hot substance found in chili peppers. Strangely enough, clinical studies showed that a one-hour application of up to four patches reduced PHN pain for up to 12 weeks. Since this medication is non-narcotic, it is unlikely to cause drowsiness or interact with other drugs, as many other shingles medications might. The most common side effects were redness at the application site, increased blood pressure and some itching.
About the Author
Shingles is a very painful medical condition, and there is a lot of information that is not known about this disease. If you need help understanding what this disease is and how to get effective treatment for shingles pain, visit the Shingles Disease site for answers to your questions.
