Get Your Shingles Shot
At first, it may feel like a slight itch or tingling sensation. No big deal. But a few days later, a rash of blisters filled with fluid appear and cover the front and back of your body, like you rolled in a patch of poison ivy. But you didn’t. You got shingles, also known as the virus herpes zoster, an often excruciatingly painful condition where even the mildest touch can make the most stoic person wince.
The blisters typically form on the body but can also affect the face. They usually last about 10 days, form a crust, then fall off. For some people, the process can take more than five weeks to complete. And although the rash improves, the pain can last longer.
Twenty percent of those who get shingles develop a condition known as post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN), a nerve pain without the rash that can persist for years. The older you are when you get shingles, the more likely you are to develop PHN. The pain is so severe that it can cause insomnia, weight loss, and depression.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
➢ Get the shot sooner rather than later. The older you get, the less effective the vaccine.
➢ After the age of 70, the vaccine is about 40 percent less effective.
➢ The CDC recommends people over age 50 get the shot.
While it doesn’t always prevent the shingles, it reduces the severity and may prevent PHN.
The vaccine doesn’t guarantee you won’t get shingles but it does cut your risk in half. And if you do get it, the vaccine reduces the severity and possibility of long-term complications.
“It really is important to get it if there are no contraindications because the incidence of the disease increases with age,” says dermatologist Lorraine Young, MD, dermatology, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center. “The vaccine significantly decreases the incidence and burden of the illness as well as the development of post-herpetic neuralgia.”
The shot is only needed once. There are only a few reasons not to get this shot. According to Dr. Young, contraindications include if someone is immunosuppressed, pregnant, or has active, untreated tuberculosis.
A Lingering Vestige of Childhood
Shingles develops in people who have had chickenpox. It is a reactivation of that virus, which remains dormant in the body after the initial disease has passed. Those who are most susceptible are age 60 and older, are under stress or ill, and have a weakened immune system because of age, disease, or medications. Family history also might make a person more susceptible to shingles.
Shingles is not contagious, but the virus that causes it can be spread by direct contact from a person who has the condition to another person who has not had chickenpox. That person will get chickenpox, but not shingles.
Who Is Most Susceptible
Of the one million cases of shingles reported annually, more than half occur in people over the age of 60. Shingles af-fects women nearly 40 percent more often than men. As age goes up so too does the possibility of PHN. Half the people over age 60 who get shingles also develop PHN. And 75 percent of people over 70 will get this painful condition that can last anywhere from months to years. A shingles shot can reduce the risk of PHN by 65 percent.
Treatment Options
If you feel pain, tingling, and itching on one side of your face or body and have had chickenpox, you might be feeling the onset of shingles. See your doctor right away. The condition can be treated with antiviral medications. They are most effective when taken within 72 hours of initial symptoms. If you wait too long, antivirals are no longer an option but there are some medications that can help with the pain. Topical medications such as a lidocaine patch can help, as can some pain relieving drugs.
A Vaccine That Is Commonly Avoided
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends the one-time shingles shot (Zostavax vaccine) for people over the age of 50. Despite the proven effects of this vaccine, a study of 700,000 Medicare patients showed that less than four percent of them got the vaccine. Cost is often cited as a reason why people don’t get vaccinated. The fee can be $150 or more. Medicare will cover some of the cost for those who have a Medicare Part D prescription plan. Most pri-vate insurers may cover the cost for those over 60 years of age.
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