University Health System Blog

Dr. Ronda Keller answers the question: “What exactly is shingles?”

Shingles is a very painful viral infection caused by the chickenpox virus.

Ninety-five percent of children are exposed to the chicken pox virus by the time they are 15; it comes back in adulthood as shingles if one has had chicken pox as a child.

Symptoms include pain and a rash usually confined to one specific area of the body. Patients may notice the pain in an area they can’t explain (or a general sense of not feeling good) that starts in the nerve endings and works its way to the skin’s surface.

A skin outbreak of weeping blisters appears several days later and can be extremely painful even after the rash goes away.

Sixty percent of shingles cases occur in adults over the age of 60, while just 35 percent occurs in those under 60.

A vaccine is available to prevent an initial outbreak and is highly recommended for those ages 60 to 70.

There is not enough information available to determine if the vaccine benefits those who have already had an outbreak. The vaccine is not given to those under age 60. There are plenty of medications to treat the nerve pain after the outbreak passes and come in both pill and topical cream format.

Ronda Keller, D.O. is an internist practicing in Reno, Nevada at University Health System. She attended medical school at Western University of Health Sciences and completed her residency at Legacy Good Samaritan Hospital and Medical Center.

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