what is shingles?

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Shingles (herpes zoster) is a viral infection of the nerve roots. It causes pain and a band of rash that spreads on one side of your body. Shingles is most common in older adults and people who have weakened immune systems because of stress, injury, certain medications, or other factors.

What causes shingles?

Shingles is caused by the reactivation of the virus (varicella-zoster virus) that causes chickenpox. After you recover from chickenpox, the virus lies dormant (inactive) in your nerve roots. In some people, it stays dormant for the rest of their lives. In others, the virus reactivates when disease, stress, or aging weakens the immune system. 1 The cause of reactivation of the virus is unclear; however, once it does reactivate, it causes shingles, not another case of chickenpox. Most people who get shingles will not get the disease again, although it does come back in a few people.

What are the symptoms of shingles?

Early symptoms of shingles include:

* Headache.
* Sensitivity to light.
* Flu-like symptoms without a fever.

You may then feel itching, tingling, or extreme pain in the area where a rash will develop several days later, commonly on your back or neck. The rash progresses into clusters of blisters along the path of the nerve. The blisters fill with fluid and eventually crust over. It takes 2 to 4 weeks for the blisters to heal, although some scars may remain. 2

Complications of shingles can occur and include:

* Postherpetic neuralgia, persistent pain that lasts longer than 1 month after the rash heals.
* Disseminated zoster, a blistery rash that spreads over a large portion of the body and can affect the heart, lungs, liver, pancreas, joints, and intestinal tract. Infection may spread to nerves that control movement, which may cause temporary weakness.
* Cranial nerve complications, if shingles affects the nerves originating in the brain. Complications can include inflammation or blockage of blood vessels.
* Herpes zoster ophthalmicus, a shingles rash on the forehead, cheek, nose, and around one eye that could threaten your sight. This type of shingles needs immediate treatment. 3

How is shingles treated?

There is no cure for shingles, but treatment may shorten the length of illness and prevent complications. Treatment may include:

* Antiviral medications, sometimes in combination with corticosteroids, to reduce the pain and duration of shingles.
* Pain medications, antidepressants, and topical creams to relieve long-term pain.

Who gets shingles?

You must have had chickenpox, even a mild case, to get shingles. You have an increased risk of developing shingles if you: 1

* Are older than 50.
* Have an autoimmune disease, meaning your immune system attacks its own tissues as though they were foreign substances.
* Have another medical condition or stress that weakens the immune system.

You cannot develop shingles if you have not had chickenpox.

Other Answers:
The tiles on your roof.

It's when adults get a form of chicken pocks

Adult chickenpox virus http://health.yahoo.com/ency/healthwise/hw75433

it is a painful rash that develops around your waist; usually because of some sort of stress/immune related compromise

the things that go on your roof.

it is also known as varicella zoster... its a painful rash that appears on an area supplied by the same nerve... ppl get it wen they had chicken pox wen they were kids... it is treated by acyclovir... it relieves the symptoms...

Shingles (herpes zoster) is an outbreak of rash or blisters on the skin that is caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox — the varicella-zoster virus. The first sign of shingles is often burning or tingling pain, or sometimes numbness or itch, in one particular location on only one side of the body. After several days or a week, a rash of fluid-filled blisters, similar to chickenpox, appears in one area on one side of the body. Shingles pain can be mild or intense. Some people have mostly itching; some feel pain from the gentlest touch or breeze. The most common location for shingles is a band, called a dermatome, spanning one side of the trunk around the waistline. Anyone who has had chickenpox is at risk for shingles. Scientists think that in the original battle with the varicella-zoster virus, some of the virus particles leave the skin blisters and move into the nervous system. When the varicella-zoster virus reactivates, the virus moves back down the long nerve fibers that extend from the sensory cell bodies to the skin. The viruses multiply, the tell-tale rash erupts, and the person now has shingles.

Are you asking about whats on the roof of a house of a medical term? If you wanting to know the Medical term Shingles, its a form of herpies (just like chicken pox) and it starts as a scaly rash that lays in layers like shingles on a roof.

Shingles is a dissese that is cauged by dormant chicken pox viruses in your spine. With some people, once some people have the chicken pox, it dosn't just fade away. The virus stays in between your vertabra, and if unhealthy problems or an injury occours in your spine, you get shingles.

What is shingles?
Shingles is an infection caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox. This virus is called varicella zoster. You cannot develop shingles unless you have had a previous infection of chickenpox (usually as a child).

Shingles is also called herpes zoster. This infection is most common in people over 60 years of age, but young people can have it as well.

How does it occur?
After you recover from chickenpox, the chickenpox virus stays in your body. It moves to the roots of your nerve cells (near the spinal cord) and becomes inactive (dormant). Later, if the virus becomes active again, the symptoms are called shingles.

What exactly causes the virus to become active is not known. A weakened immune system seems to allow reactivation of the virus. This may occur with immune-suppressing medicines, with another illness, or after major surgery. It is also seen as a complication of cancer or AIDS. Advancing age and chronic use of cortisone-type drugs may trigger shingles. The virus may also become active again after the skin is injured or sunburned. Emotional stress seems to be a common trigger as well.

What are the symptoms?
The first sign of shingles is often burning, sharp pain, tingling, or numbness in or under your skin on one side of your body or face. The most common site is the back or upper abdomen. You may have severe itching or aching. You also may feel tired and ill with fever, chills, headache, and upset stomach.

After several days, you will notice a rash of small, clear, fluid-filled blisters on reddened skin. Within 3 days after they appear, the blisters will turn yellow, then dry and crust over. Over the next 2 weeks the crusts will drop off, sometimes leaving small, pitted scars.

Because they tend to follow nerve paths, the blisters are usually found in a line, often extending from the back or flank around to the abdomen, almost always on just one side. Shingles usually doesn't cross the midline of the body. The rash also may appear on one side of your face. Some people have painful eye inflammations and infections.

Is shingles contagious?
You cannot get shingles from someone else, but you may get chickenpox from contact with shingles blisters if you have not had chickenpox before. The shingles virus is in the blister fluid. The virus can spread by direct contact with a blister. It can also be spread by indirect contact, for example, if you use a washcloth that has blister fluid on it.

If you have shingles, avoid contact with infants, children, pregnant women, and adults who have never had chickenpox or the chickenpox shot until your blisters are completely dry.

How is shingles diagnosed?
Your health care provider will ask about your symptoms and examine you. Your provider may order lab tests to look for the virus in fluid from a blister.

How is it treated?
It is best to start treatment within 24 to 48 hours after symptoms start. Home care includes:

Putting cool, moist washcloths on the rash.
Taking nonprescription painkillers, such as acetaminophen.
Your health care provider may prescribe:

an antiviral drug, such as acyclovir, to speed recovery and lessen the chance of prolonged symptoms from nerve inflammation
stronger medicine for pain if nonprescription painkillers are not helping enough
antibacterial salves or lotions to help prevent bacterial infection of the blisters
capsaicin cream for pain
corticosteroids (if you are over 50).
How long will the effects last?
The rash from shingles will heal in 1 to 3 weeks and the pain or irritation will usually disappear within 3 to 5 weeks.

If the virus damages a nerve, you may have pain, numbness, or tingling for months or even years after the rash is healed. This is a condition called postherpetic neuralgia. It is most likely to occur after a shingles outbreak in people over 50 years old. Antiviral medicine prescribed at the time the shingles is diagnosed and taken for 7 days can help prevent this problem.

When shingles occurs on the head or scalp, symptoms can include headaches and weakness of one side of the face (causing that side of the face to look droopy). Even if you have a lot of weakness of the face muscles, the symptoms usually go away eventually, although it may take many months.

How can I take care of myself?
Take a pain-relief medicine such as acetaminophen. Take other medicine as prescribed by your health care provider.
Put a cool compress on the rash (such as a cool, moist washcloth).
Rest in bed during the early stages if you have fever and other symptoms.
Try to avoid having clothing or bed linens rubbing against the rash, which might irritate it.
Call your health care provider if:
You develop worsening pain or fever.
You develop a stiff neck, hearing loss, or changes in thinking and reasoning.
The blisters show signs of bacterial infection, such as increasing pain or redness, or milky yellow drainage from the blister sites.
The blisters are close to the eyes or you have pain in your eyes.
How can I help prevent shingles?
If you have never had chickenpox, you can get a shot to help prevent infection with the chickenpox virus.
You can protect your immune system and lessen your chances of getting shingles by trying to keep your stress under control.

Shingles is the adult onset of chicken pox, travels along the nerves causing extremely painful in most instances but treatable with medication.

its the adult version of chicken pox and very dangerous if you get them, consult your Doctor

a form of the herpes zoster virus---it is adult chicken pox it can be dangerous and painful its symptoms can be managed with aclovir or similar drug but some have pain for life,especially if a trigeminal nerve is affected

That comes from people who has had chicken pox before. If you have this You cannot scartch it!!! It looks like a bad rash with bumps on it, and it hurts. If you look it up, It is actually some type of Herpes. You need to see a doctor immediately and be careful of not touching it. Wash your hands often and disenfect everything you have touched. This is Contagious to people who had Chicken pox before. It can be transmitted by touching it and grabbing something and somone else touching that.

Shingles is basically the Chicken Pox. You are told time and tie again that once you have had the chicken pox you'll never have it again, not true! If your immune system weakens you can get the Shingles. Shingles start with pains in an area of your body and that part itches a lot and sometimes you get a numbness in that area. If you diagnose it early enough you can treat it and get better in just 2 weeks. Later on in life, you may get pains in the area where Shingles started, those pains are normal.

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what is shingles?

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