What’s Herpes Zoster ? Is it an STD ? Symptoms and treatments

Hello, I want to talk to you today about an existing disease in Australia and that touches hundreds of Australians and still remains unknown

Herpes Zoster, what is it, what are the causes, and how can we heal, are the questions to which I would bring answers in this article

VZV has the same morphology as other Herpesviridae, having a tropism for the skin and the nervous system
it is known by its level of rapid contamination, it spreads with the direct contact of the areas of the skin affected by the virus

The virus is developing on the skin of the human, it is practically its only natural reservoir

Nearly 90 percent of humans have antibodies to this virus because most of them have had an infection, and the virus is known by its resistance and remains human for life in its latent form.

We learned a little about this virus and how it is, now we will see how can catch it, what are the causes of contamination and development of herpes Zoster

The virus is transmitted mainly through direct contact with the skin lesions of people with chickenpox or through dirty hands, and sometimes rarely indirectly through solid objects on contact with them.

Aerial transmission is also possible during the incubation of chicken pox and during chickenpox, and sometimes development takes place years later.

Given that human beech is practically the only natural reservoir, it turns out that it has other reserves like domestic animals but this probability remains very minimal
animals such as sigmodons, laboratory rats, guinea pigs …

The symptoms of herpes

The signs and symptoms of the area usually affect only a small part of the human body. Some of these signs and symptoms are:

• Feel pain, burning, numbness or tingling too much
• Touch sensitivity of areas affected by the virus
• Red rash that starts a few days after the pain observed at the beginning
• Liquid-filled blisters that open and form crusts
• itching

Other patients also present:

• Fever
• A strong ability to light
• Have Headache
• Feel tired

Normally, pain is the first symptom found after the infection. For some people, it can be intense and strong

Depending on the location of the pain, it is sometimes possible to confuse the pain with the symptom of a problem affecting the heart, lungs or kidneys. Some people suffer from pain due to the virus without visible rash

The most common and recognized complication of herpes is post-herpetic neuralgia, that is, pain that persists well beyond skin healing.

According to the explanation of post-herpetic neuralgia (number of days of persistent pain after the onset of rash), the risk varies from 5% to 32% and increases in elderly patients.

The duration of the pain also varies and can last for years, although it usually disappears within 6 months. People over the age of 70 are more likely to suffer from persistent, ongoing pain

Ocular complications are common and occur when the virus infects the ophthalmic branch of the trigeminal nerve. If left untreated, the infection can cause conjunctivitis, keratitis, corneal ulceration, iridocyclitis, glaucoma, and blindness.

Other complications include bacterial superinfections (1.1%), peripheral nerve palsy (1.8%), loss of sensation (1.8%), encephalitis and disseminated zoster (1.7%) . ). Shingles are rarely fatal in immunocompetent patients, but may be fatal in immunocompromised individuals.

How can have the virus weal

Treatment or guerison is usually symptomatic, with disinfection and cleansing of the lesions. It is also advisable to cut short the nails of the children to limit the lesions of scraping following the demangeaisons

In the most severe cases of chickenpox or VZV infections in immunocompromised individuals, antivirals may be prescribed.

Aciclovir, valacyclovir and famciclovir are the most used for treatment is known worldwide

John Rogers

I have been working in General Practice since 2006.