The Ministry of Health in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia revealed the availability of the shingles vaccine, which is given in two doses between two to six months apart. Complications in people with shingles.
People with shingles can also transmit the virus to anyone who does not have immunity to chickenpox, and this usually occurs through transmission of the virus by direct or air contact with open sores resulting from a herpes rash. Shingles, which can be very dangerous for some people especially if they have never had chickenpox or did not receive the chickenpox vaccine, or people with weakened immune systems, newborns and pregnant women, and a person with shingles remains contagious until the herpes blisters are gone And he should avoid direct contact with anyone.
Shingles signs and symptoms usually begin in a small area on one side of the body. These signs and symptoms may include severe pain, burning, numbness or tingling, sensitivity to touch, a red rash that appears a few days after the pain begins, fluid-filled blisters that open and crusty, and itching, as well as Some people experience sensitivity to light, fatigue, fever, and headache, and for some people, complications include persistent shingles pain long after the blisters are gone.
This condition is called post-herpetic neuralgia, and it occurs when damaged nerve fibers send conflicting and excessive pain messages from the skin to the brain, and shingles can cause painful infections in or around the eye, which can lead to loss of vision, and it can also cause encephalitis or Facial paralysis, balance or hearing problems, and if not treated properly, shingles can lead to skin infections.
Shingles is rarely life-threatening, but often changes its appearance dramatically. Shingles pain can cause disruptions in daily life, work, and overall quality of life, and the disease can develop into potentially serious complications such as chronic nerve pain. Which occurs in about 30% of cases, and eye complications occur in about 25% of cases that can lead to vision loss.
It is worth noting that shingles is a viral infection resulting from the reactivation of chickenpox after a previous infection, as the virus remains latent in the nervous tissue near the spinal cord and brain after the person infected with the chickenpox virus has recovered for several years, until the person is exposed to specific factors that lead to activity The virus is again transmitted through the nerve pathways to the skin, causing shingles.
These factors are related to the weakening of the immune system associated with age, especially if the person suffers from chronic diseases such as high pressure and diabetes, or as a result of diseases that directly affect the immune system, as well as autoimmune diseases and immunosuppressive treatments. Chickenpox will get shingles, as according to international studies, more than 90% of adults over the age of fifty carry the virus that causes shingles inside them, and one in three people will get shingles during his life.