Ways to treat and prevent tingles from shingles

Did you know that one out of three people in the U.S. will develop the shingles virus in their lifetime? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports there’s an estimated 1 million cases of shingles each year. Don’t be scared by those numbers – shingles is preventable and treatable.

Singles is one of the infections primary care physicians want to avoid with their patients. A common myth is that if you did not have chicken pox when you were little, you are less likely to get shingles when you’re older. Anyone, including children, can contract shingles, but the risk increases with age.

While shingles are associated with a rash, the virus often begins with a pain, itching or tingling following along the course of the nerve that is infected. The rash is almost always on one side of the body, but can occur anywhere, even the eye. The majority of people who were born before 1980 in the U.S. have already had chicken pox. Sometimes the chicken pox rash is very mild, and people don’t know even they have the disease.

Once an individual gets chicken pox, part of the virus will be present in the nerve endings, and after some years, it can be reactivated from stress.

Other shingles symptoms include fever, headache and upset stomach. Sometimes people have pain along the course of a nerve, but no rash. Any damage to the nerve may result in long-term pain.

People with shingles can transmit the virus to an individual who has not yet had chickenpox nor been vaccinated against it. Individuals with compromised immune systems are also at risk. Shingles can be transmitted from the time a person first feels the pain until the blisters from the rash scab over. If the rash is still fresh and has not yet scabbed over, you can contract shingles from skin-to-skin contact and droplet contact. We encourage people with the rash to cover the area until it scabs and stay away from others. Antiviral medications can help treat shingles, and shorten the length and severity of the outbreak.

The vaccine is FDA recommended for anyone over the age of 50. One of the strengths of a primary care physician is to encourage people to get vaccinated. Toward the end of 2017, the FDA approved a new vaccine, Shingrix, which is not only safer, but also more effective in preventing shingles. Shingrix is 97% effective with two doses administered two to six months apart; the older vaccine, Zostavax, is only around 51% effective.

Since the vaccine is new, unfortunately not all insurance companies currently cover the vaccine as they do other shots. Medicare Part B does not cover the vaccine, but many Medicare prescription plans (Part D) do provide at least partial coverage. If you’re 50 or older, especially if you’re immunocompromised, you need to make sure you get the shingles vaccine, and the earlier you get it, the better.

Some patients ask, “What if I miss the second dose for the Shingrix; do I have to start the process over?” The answer is no. Once you get the second dose, it will offer immunity.

Patients should talk with their insurance companies about the vaccine. Unlike the older live vaccine (Zostavax), the newer Shingrix is not a live vaccine, and it may be used in patients whose immune systems are compromised, such as cancer patients undergoing treatment.

If you’re over the age of 50 and are interested in getting the vaccine, talk with your doctor.