Shingles is a disease in which blisters form bands on the skin and cause neuralgia in the affected area. If you were infected with chickenpox as a child or have been vaccinated, the virus stays dormant in your body until your immune system weakens. According to the National Health Insurance Corporation, regarding 730,000 people had shingles last year, of which 440,000 were women, especially among women in their 50s and 60s.
Shingles, in which the virus that was dormant in the body’s ganglia is active as the immune system declines, is likely to occur in winter when the body temperature drops. In the early stage of the disease, it is easy to miss the treatment period because it shows a similar pattern to a cold body aches for regarding 4 to 5 days. Later, as the symptoms progress, blisters appear like a band-shaped red rash. The blisters seen at this time are not symmetrical and appear only on one side of the body. The rash mainly occurs on the face, trunk, and buttocks, and in some cases, only itching or pain occurs without blisters.
Shingles is known to be extremely painful, comparable to postpartum pain and cancer pain. The pain, like being cut or pierced with a knife, appears momentarily and strongly, and depending on the person, there are cases in which the pain is complained even to the degree of wind or clothing rubbing.
The golden time for shingles is 72 hours, so it is best to visit a hospital and receive appropriate treatment within this time. If this period is missed, various complications may occur. Complications appear differently depending on where the blisters occurred. If it occurs around the eyes, various complications can come to the eyes, and if it occurs on the face, facial nerve paralysis may occur. One of the most common complications is postherpetic neuralgia.
Postherpetic neuralgia refers to a condition in which nerve pain remains even following the blisters or skin lesions have disappeared. In most cases, it lasts for several months, but in severe cases, chronic pain that feels like burning, pricking, or stinging can continue for years. Chronic pain can cause sleep disturbance, depression, and chronic fatigue, and can cause great inconvenience to daily life. In some patients, motor nerves are invaded, and paralysis may result in inability to lift an arm or leg, and urinary disorders may occur in the bladder area.
For shingles, which can be accompanied by various complications, it is most important not to miss the timing of treatment when symptoms appear. In the early stages of herpes zoster, antiviral drugs are administered to prevent postherpetic neuralgia. If the pain is severe, painkillers may be administered, and immunity enhancement treatment may be performed.
“Post-herpetic neuralgia not only causes severe pain that reduces the quality of life, but also can cause various complications,” said Gwang-hye Hospital Director Park Kyung-kyu. Therefore, it is important to reduce the probability of complications and neuralgia by performing treatment within 72 hours of the onset of shingles.” “If the pain is severe, nerve pain can be improved by combining nerve block or biocurrent therapy. Among them, biocurrent therapy is a treatment method that normalizes the flow of biocurrent and blood flow by passing a high-voltage microcurrent to a region where pain is caused by neuroinflammation. It is the same principle as restoring function by charging a discharged battery.”
In order to prevent shingles in winter, care must be taken not to lower immunity due to daily temperature differences. If you are over 50 years of age, you should be vaccinated and wash your hands regularly to maintain good hygiene. If you have blisters, keep them from scratching until they crust over to prevent infection. Just like chickenpox, touching the blisters can transmit the virus. In addition, it is good to avoid overwork, excessive physical activity, and stress, and to maintain health with sufficient rest and sleep.<도움말: 광혜병원 박경우 원장>
