Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Can Shingles Get On Your Face

What Does Shingles On The Face Look Like

Shingles: Signs, Symptoms and Treatment with Dr. Mark Shalauta | San Diego Health

Shingles usually starts as a painful, tingling, itching, or numb sensation in the affected area of skin.

A rash may later develop and eventually produce painful blisters. The rash may have a flushed color or appearance.

Blisters from shingles, which may ooze, typically contain fluid. Blisters that form can burst and become open sores or dry out and form scabs.

The rash may appear on just one site or in several places, and it may appear on only one side of the face.

However, the appearance of a shingles rash may vary from what is typical depending on the individual.

Do You Always Get The Typical Rash If You Have Shingles

Occasionally, some people dont get a rash. If you have any of the other symptoms of shingles , see your healthcare provider sooner rather than later. There are effective treatments you can take early for shingles. Even if you dont have shingles, seeing your healthcare provider will help you get your condition diagnosed and treated.

How Is It Treated

It is best to start treatment as soon as possible after you notice the rash. See your healthcare provider to discuss treatment with antiviral medicine, such as acyclovir. This medicine is most effective if you start taking it within the first 3 days of the rash. Antiviral medicine may speed your recovery and lessen the chance that the pain will last for a long time.

Your provider may also recommend or prescribe:

  • medicine for pain
  • antibacterial salves or lotions to help prevent bacterial infection of the blisters
  • corticosteroids

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Shingles Vs Other Skin Conditions

Shingles is different from other conditions in several ways:

  • People may experience pain, including burning, tingling, or electrical sensations on their skin for 1 to 2 days before the rash develops.
  • The shingles rash looks like a group of small blisters or lesions.
  • The rash usually develops in one area, not as patches of blisters in different areas on the face.
  • Shingles usually affects just one side of the face.
  • Makeup, sun exposure, or an allergy do not trigger shingles.
  • Shingles will not spread from one area of the body through contact, unlike some other rashes.
  • Some people develop more lesions after the initial outbreak. These blisters might be near the location of the first rash, or somewhere else.
  • The rash begins as sore blisters that may then crack, bleed, and scab over.
  • Shingles lasts 1 to 2 weeks.
  • Shingles sometimes causes other symptoms, such as a fever, headache, muscle aches, and stomach pain or vomiting.
  • Only people who have previously had chickenpox can get shingles.

If You Get The Shingles Vaccine Does This Mean Youre 100% Protected From Getting Shingles

Shingles on Face Pictures  35 Photos &  Images / illnessee.com

No. Just like most vaccines, getting vaccinated with a shingles vaccine doesnt provide 100% protection from disease. However, getting the shingles vaccine reduces your risk of developing shingles.

Even if you do develop shingles, youll be more likely to have a mild case. Also, youll be much less likely to develop postherpetic neuralgia, a painful condition that can follow a shingles outbreak.

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Shingles Vs Poison Ivy: How To Tell The Difference

Roughly 1 in 3 people in the United States will have shingles in their lifetime, making it one of the most common viral illnesses in older adults.

Poison ivy rash is one of the most common dermatological conditions in the United States, affecting up to 50 million people each year.

While shingles and poison ivy can both cause a blistering rash, there are significant differences in symptoms between the two conditions.

In this article, well explore how to tell the difference between shingles and poison ivy, including the symptoms, treatment, and prevention for each condition.

Although shingles and poison ivy may appear similar at first glance, there are definitive differences between the symptoms of shingles and the symptoms of poison ivy rash.

A viral shingles infection generally presents with a specific type of blistery rash thats accompanied by other symptoms of malaise, such as pain, fever, chills, and headaches.

An allergic poison ivy rash may look similar, but is usually more localized and doesnt cause symptoms of feeling unwell.

The chart below outlines the primary differences between a shingles infection and a poison ivy rash.

Shingles

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Timeline Of Shingles Symptoms

Shingles actually doesn’t occur without a prior chickenpox infection. VZV lies dormant in nerve roots after you recover where it can reactivate years later, returning as shingles. But though they share the same viral cause, the two conditions are distinct.

The first sign of shingles is usually a burning or stinging sensation in a band-like formation around the waist, chest, stomach, or back.

You may experience itching or become incredibly sensitive to even the softest touch. The weight of bed sheets on your skin may be uncomfortable. You may also experience fatigue, fever, and headache.

After a few days or even up to a couple of weeks, the telltale shingles rash will appear. This rash consists of fluid-filled blisters that worsen quickly. The blisters may look like chickenpox, but they are clustered together.

The shingles rash can vary in color, depending on your skin tone. On darker skin, the rash may be pink, grayish, dark brown, or even purple. On lighter skin, it will be red.

This is the stage at which VZV can be passed on to someone who has never had or been vaccinated against chickenpox.

Blisters typically scab over within a week to 10 days. Shingles typically takes three to five weeks to progress through all of its stages.

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How Is Herpes Zoster Diagnosed

Doctors diagnose shingles through a physical clinical exam. They may take a skin sample to test further if the causative factors remain unknown. However, if you have another type of herpes virus, the test will read positive.

Shingles on the face can lead to various eye compilations, including glaucoma and blindness. That makes it important to seek medical intervention from an ophthalmologist if you notice any of the aforementioned symptoms.

Shingles On The Face: Symptoms Causes And Treatments

Face Shingles Treatment | Auburn Medical Group

Shingles is a common nerve infection caused by a virus. Also known as herpes zoster, the condition typically triggers small blisters or a painful rash on the affected area of the skin.

When shingles breaks out near the eyes, they can present a long-term danger to vision, especially if treatment is delayed.

Recommended Reading: How To Treat Shingles At Home

What Increases Your Risk

Things that increase risk for shingles include:

  • Having had chickenpox. You must have had chickenpox to get shingles.
  • Being older than 50.
  • Having a weakened immune system due to another disease, such as diabetes or HIV infection.
  • Experiencing stress or trauma.
  • Having cancer or receiving treatment for cancer.
  • Taking medicines that affect your immune system, such as steroids or medicines that are taken after having an organ transplant.

If a pregnant woman gets chickenpox, her baby has a high risk for shingles during his or her first 2 years of life. And if a baby gets chickenpox in the first year of life, he or she has a higher risk for shingles during childhood.footnote 1

Postherpetic neuralgia is a common complication of shingles that lasts for at least 30 days and may continue for months or years. You can reduce your risk for getting shingles and developing PHN by getting the shingles vaccine.

When Shingles Strikes Your Face

Dozens of muscles line your face, and they help you talk, eat, blink, and wink. All those movements start with nerve impulses, and any nerve band can get hit with a shingles outbreak.

Just one side of the face is touched by the issue, and the blisters will not spread. If you touch the bumps on one side of your face and then touch the other, you can’t spread the problem around. The virus sits within the nerves, far below the skin, and you can’t influence how the infection spreads.

Your shingles may appear on or around your eyelid, and that can make blinking difficult or painful. Sometimes, the tissues swell, and that makes it hard for you to open your eye.

Also Check: Where Can Shingles Rash Appear

Shingles Rash In The Eyes

Ophthalmic shingles, or herpes zoster ophthalmicus , is when the shingles rash is in and/or around the eye. It is a severe variant that affects 20% of people with the infection.

If you develop a shingles rash near your eye, contact your healthcare provider right away.

lauraag / Getty Images

HZO usually appears within two to four weeks after a shingles rash starts. People who have a compromised immune system, such as those with HIV/AIDS, are at higher risk for developing this.

All parts of the eye can be affected. For example:

  • You can develop blisters around the eye that may cause the eyelids and surrounding area to swell.
  • The corneaâthe transparent part over the front of the eyeâcan be affected, causing calcification .
  • Blood vessels in the eye could become more pronounced blood flow to the eye could be impacted.

To reduce your risk of long-term eye complications, contact your healthcare provider right away if you have a shingles rash on your face.

Shingles On Face Causes Signs And Treatment

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Before people ever get the chance to speak to you and get to know you, one of the very first things they will obviously notice about you is your face. Now everyones face is unique and special and should be properly cared for. The disease known as Shingles can affect the face and leave it looking scarred. Lets take a look at how we can best avoid this from happening.

If you live to be 85 and above, then at some in your life you will probably have to face Shingles. Data reports estimate that one in every three people who live to that ripe old age, will have to face Herpes Zoster at some stage in their life. Most Shingles cases can be found in patients 50 years and older. So what exactly is this Shingles?

Shingles is a viral malady that is caused by the varicella zoster virus, the very same virus that causes chicken pox especially in young children . And it can be a very painful disease too. Shingles can be also referred to as zoster. Painful blisters set on one half of the body typically identify this disease, with the rash appearing anywhere on the body, from the body torso right through to the face.

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Preventing The Virus Spreading

If you have the shingles rash, do not share towels or flannels, go swimming, or play contact sports. This will help prevent the virus being passed on to someone who has not had chickenpox.

You should also avoid work or school if your rash is weeping and cannot be covered.

Chickenpox can be particularly dangerous for certain groups of people. If you have shingles, avoid:

  • women who are pregnant and have not had chickenpox before as they could catch it from you, which may harm their unborn baby
  • people who have a weak immune system, such as someone with HIV or AIDS
  • babies less than one month old, unless it is your own baby, in which case your baby should have antibodies to protect them from the virus

Once your blisters have dried and scabbed over, you are no longer contagious and will not need to avoid anyone.

How Are Shingles Treated

Shingles is a viral condition that has no outright treatment, but medications lessen symptoms. Regardless of where the condition develops, treatment typically involves taking antiviral drugs like valacyclovir and famciclovir. People with compromised immunities may receive acyclovir instead.

Other treatment options include steroids, anticonvulsants and medicated lotions and creams to relieve itching. Doctors also suggest using non-medicated cold compresses on affected areas.

Specific treatments vary depending on various factors, including:

  • The extent of the condition
  • Your medical history, health, and age
  • How long the condition has been present
  • Tolerance to various therapies, procedures, and medicines

Read Also: What Is The Meaning Of Shingles

What Should I Expect Will Happen To Me If I Get Shingles

Shingles can be a very painful condition. If you think you have the symptoms of shingles, see your healthcare provider right away. Starting antiviral medications early can ease your discomfort and reduce the duration of your symptoms.

A better approach to shingles is to take action and do what you can to lessen your risk of getting it. If you never had shingles or had a bout of them in the past, talk to your healthcare provider about getting the shingles vaccine. If youve never had chickenpox, talk with your healthcare provider about getting the chickenpox vaccine.

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Shingles Painful Rash Symptoms Virus Cause Risk Prevention Treating

Mayo Clinic Minute: What are eye shingles?

If you had chickenpox as a child the virus still lives in your nervous system. You are at high risk for this condition. Shingles painful rash.

The chickenpox virus becomes reactivated years later in your body. Shingles is a viral infection resulting in a painful rash. Furthermore shingles can develop anywhere on your body.

It is not exactly known what reactivates this virus. A weakened or compromised immune system can also trigger shingles. However there are more than 200,000 cases every year in the United States alone.

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When Should I Get The Shingles Vaccine

The current shingles vaccine is a safe, easy, and more effective way to prevent shingles than the previous vaccine. In fact, it is over 90% effective at preventing shingles. Most adults age 50 and older should get vaccinated with the shingles vaccine, which is given in two doses. You can get the shingles vaccine at your doctors office and at some pharmacies.

You should get the shingles vaccine if you:

  • Have already had chickenpox, the chickenpox vaccine, or shingles
  • Received the prior shingles vaccine called Zostavax
  • Dont remember having had chickenpox

Medicare Part D and private health insurance plans may cover some or all of the cost. Check with Medicare or your health plan to find out if it is covered.

You should not get vaccinated if you:

  • Currently have shingles
  • Are sick or have a fever
  • Had an allergic reaction to a previous dose of the shingles vaccine

If you are unsure about the above criteria or have other health concerns, talk with your doctor before getting the vaccine.

How Long Does Shingles Last

Most cases of shingles last three to five weeks. Shingles follows a pattern:

  • The first sign is often burning or tingling pain sometimes, it includes numbness or itching on one side of the body.
  • Somewhere between one and five days after the tingling or burning feeling on the skin, a red rash will appear.
  • A few days later, the rash will turn into fluid-filled blisters.
  • About a week to 10 days after that, the blisters dry up and crust over.
  • A couple of weeks later, the scabs clear up.

Most people get shingles only one time. But, it is possible to have it more than once.

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Shingles Or Something Else

Small blisters that appear only on the lips or around the mouth may be cold sores, sometimes called fever blisters. Theyâre not shingles, but are instead caused by the herpes simplex virus. Itchy blisters that appear after hiking, gardening, or spending time outdoors could be a reaction to poison ivy, oak, or sumac. If you arenât sure whatâs causing your rash, see your healthcare provider.

Can Shingles Be Prevented

Shingles, Herpes Zoster

There are 2 vaccines available to reduce the likelihood of developing shingles, Zostavax and Shingrix. If you are over 50, you can talk to your doctor about whether you need it. It is recommended for everyone over 60 and is given free of charge in Australia to people aged 70 to 79.

Vaccination will not guarantee that you will not get shingles, but it will reduce your chance of developing the condition. The vaccine used to protect against shingles is not the same as the vaccine used to protect against chickenpox. Read more about the chickenpox vaccine here.

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How Is Shingles Diagnosed

If you have symptoms of shingles, especially if they involve your face, see your doctor or ophthalmologist right away.

Doctors can usually diagnose a shingles rash by performing a physical exam. Your doctor can also take a scraping of your skin rash and send it to a lab for examination under a microscope.

Its particularly important to seek treatment if you have a compromised immune system. Early treatment can help cut down on your chances for serious complications.

Shingles will have to run its course, but quite a few treatment options are available. These include:

  • antiviral drugs

Who Should Be Vaccinated With Shingrix

The Shingrix vaccine is recommended for those 50 years of age and older who are in good health.

You should get the Shingrix vaccine even if:

  • Youve had shingles already.
  • Youve been previously vaccinated with Zostavax . If youve been vaccinated with Zostavax, wait at least eight weeks before getting vaccinated with Shingrix.
  • You dont know for sure if youve ever had chickenpox.

Ask your healthcare provider, who knows your entire health history if getting this vaccine is right for you.

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