Why is shingles painful

Other treatments include antiviral drugs, antidepressants, anticonvulsants, and topical agents. Bacterial infection. A bacterial infection of the skin where the rash happens is another complication. Rarely, infections can lead to more problems, such as tissue death and scarring.

When an infection happens near or on the eyes, a corneal infection can happen. This can lead to temporary or permanent blindness. Can shingles be prevented? When should I call my healthcare provider? Key points about shingles Shingles is a common viral infection of the nerves. It causes a painful rash or small blisters on an area of skin. It is more common in people with weakened immune systems, and in people over the age of The rash is typically affects just one area on one side of the body or face.

Treatment that is started as soon as possible helps reduce the severity of the disease. Next steps Tips to help you get the most from a visit to your healthcare provider: Know the reason for your visit and what you want to happen.

Before your visit, write down questions you want answered. Bring someone with you to help you ask questions and remember what your provider tells you. At the visit, write down the name of a new diagnosis, and any new medicines, treatments, or tests. Also write down any new instructions your provider gives you. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Minus Related Pages. Other symptoms of shingles can include Fever Headache Chills Upset stomach.

Related Links. Often excruciating, the discomfort has been described as burning, stinging, tingly, prickly, itchy, numbing, achy, or shooting. It can be persistent or intermittent but will be limited to one side of the body.

This symptom can be deceiving, though. Because the pain from shingles is localized, it can be mistaken for other conditions depending on where it's focused.

For example, a stabbing or persistent pain on one side of the lower back may be attributed to sciatica or a kidney problem when, in fact, it's the early sign of a shingles outbreak in that area. Similarly, shingles pain around the lips could suggest a cold sore coming on, while pain focused on the eye or ear might seem like the start of a migraine.

The skin in the area of the prodromal pain caused by shingles will often be sensitive to the touch and reddish in appearance. As these symptoms get worse, it may begin to feel like a sunburn. Within three to five days after the initial pain of shingles develops, a few tiny pimple-like spots will appear and quickly multiply into clusters, forming a rash that feels prickly to the touch. From there, sometimes within hours, the pimples will develop into water-filled blisters, or vesicles , that then consolidate into larger blisters.

Often, redness and swelling accompany the rash. The shingles rash will form over a period of three to five days and then gradually crust over. Although it will heal within two to four weeks, the pain that accompanies it, sometimes so excruciating that simply grazing the skin with clothing can set off what feels like an electric shock, can sometimes last for weeks, months, and occasionally years.

The shingles rash looks very much like the chickenpox rash, with a key difference: Chickenpox blisters are widely scattered over the entire body. With shingles, the rash almost always occupies a finite strip of skin, usually on the face, neck, or chest, on just one side of the body. Outbreaks can involve two adjacent dermatomes, but rarely two non-adjacent dermatomes.

The exception may be in people whose immune systems are severely comprised, such as those with advanced HIV infection. They're often at risk of disseminated shingles occurring in three or more dermatomes , shingles of the eyes or internal organs, and a recurrence of shingles within six months. Aside from the discomfort that can come along with shingles, it is particularly concerning because of its potential complications. Postherpetic Neuralgia. The most common complication of shingles is a potentially debilitating condition called postherpetic neuralgia PHN that develops when nerve fibers become damaged.

It's characterized by persistent pain in the area where a shingles rash has been. Age increases susceptibility to PHN. Other risk factors include experiencing a particularly severe and painful shingles rash. Having the rash on the face or torso also increases the risk of the condition.

Treating PHN can be complicated, but it's important, as the condition can lead to further complications such as depression, fatigue, trouble concentrating, sleep issues, and appetite loss. There's no one-size-fits-all approach, however, and it often takes several medications to relieve the pain and other symptoms. Bacterial Skin Infections. The blisters caused by shingles can leave open sores, making skin vulnerable to microbes that can cause what the CDC describes as "bacterial superinfection of the lesions.

One bacterial skin infection sometimes associated with shingles is impetigo , which most often affects children. It starts with itchy sores that burst and then form honey-colored crusts. Impetigo is extremely contagious but can be treated effectively with antibiotics. Cellulitis is another skin infection known to result from shingles.

It starts with an area that's red, swollen, and feels warm and tender to the touch. If it's not treated, cellulitis can spread quickly and even affect the lymph nodes, eventually leading to a blood infection. As long as it's treated right away with oral antibiotics and good care of the affected skin, cellulitis is highly curable and unlikely to leave permanent damage. Facial Pain and Eye Damage. Ten percent to 15 percent of the time, shingles affects the trigeminal ganglion—a triple-branched nerve that provides sensation to structures in the face.

Specifically, the trigeminal ganglion involves the eye the ophthalmic branch ; the cheek the maxillary branch ; and the mandibular branch the jaw. Of these, the ophthalmic branch is the one most commonly affected by herpes zoster. According to the American Academy of Ophthalmology AAO , 25 percent of the , to , cases of shingles that occur each year are herpes zoster ophthalmicus HZO. HZO can affect any part of the eye, from the optic nerve to the conjunctiva the membrane that covers the front of the eye and lines the eyelid.

The rash begins with reddish bumps. In a few days, these bumps turn into fluid-filled blisters. You might feel a stinging or burning pain. The rash might also itch. Other symptoms include:.

Shingles occurs most often on the trunk of the body. It also occurs on only one side of the body. This could be a band of blisters around your back or chest.

The blisters usually scab over in about a week. The rash usually clears up in 2 to 4 weeks. You may see changes in the color of your skin when the scabs fall off. In more severe cases of shingles, these color changes could be permanent.

Even though the rash from shingles gets better or goes away in a few weeks, the pain may last longer. This condition is known as post-herpetic neuralgia PHN. In most people, however, the pain of shingles goes away in 1 to 2 months. Shingles is caused by the varicella zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. It stays inside certain nerve cells. Your immune system keeps the virus in these cells.

As you get older, your immune system may get weaker. If this happens, the virus may reactivate, causing shingles. If you have had the chickenpox vaccine, you are less likely to get chickenpox. Most people who get shingles are over 50 years of age or have a weak immune system. For example, you might get shingles if you:. No one can catch shingles from you.

But the virus can be spread to a person who has never had chickenpox. The virus lives in the blisters that shingles causes. It can be spread until the blisters are completely healed. If you have blisters that have not crusted over yet, you should stay away from:.

Tell your doctor if you live with children who have not had chickenpox. They may need to be vaccinated.