How Long Does Shingles Last On Your Face

Other Health Problems Due To Shingles

Some people develop other health problems after the shingles rash clears, which include:

Postherpetic neuralgia : This is the most common. Occurring where you had the rash, PHN can cause constant tingling, burning, and pain. For others, the pain comes and goes.

Whether the pain is constant or intermittent, it can go on for a long time. You can have PHN for months, years, or the rest of your life. There is no way to know how long it will last.

The pain caused by PHN can become so severe that it interferes with your life, making everyday activities painful. A musician may no longer be able to play an instrument. Some people cannot walk comfortably. It may be difficult to bathe or get dressed. You may have trouble sleeping.

How to prevent PHN: If you have shingles, you can greatly reduce your risk of PHN by getting treated for shingles within 3 days of developing the rash.

Get treated for shingles within 3 days of developing the rash

Taking antiviral medication within 3 days of getting the shingles rash can: Reduce your risk of developing PHN Ease symptoms of shingles Clear the shingles rash more quickly

Other health problems that can develop after the shingles rash clears include:

• Blindness or loss of some eyesight

Although rare, some people die of shingles.

Treatment can prevent these complications.

You can find out if you have a greater risk of developing shingles at, Shingles: Causes.

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When Should You See A Healthcare Provider For Shingles

If you experience persistent pain or a widespread itchy rash on the body or face, you should reach out to your healthcare provider. The National Institute of Aging recommends that you see your healthcare provider no later than three days after the rash or skin pain has appeared.

Early diagnosis and treatment are vital to reducing your risk for complications, helping you to heal quicker and reduce the potential for scarring.

Complications Of Having Both Shingles And Hiv

HIV and other chronic conditions that weaken the immune system can cause shingles symptoms and complications to become more severe.

When a person has both HIV and shingles, they are more likely to experience the following complications of shingles:

• long-term pain, which can last for months or years
• longer-lasting shingles symptoms
• a higher risk of skin infections
• a higher risk of developing chronic shingles
• disseminated zoster, in which the rash covers a much larger part of the body

• Immune System / Vaccines

7 sourcescollapsed

• Blank, L. J., Polydefkis, M. J., Moore, R. D., & Gebo, K. A. . Herpes zoster among persons living with HIV in the current ART era. Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, 61, 203â207

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How Long Does Shingles On The Scalp Last

Not every case of scalp shingles lasts for the same amount of time. It will depend on your immune health. Even in people with healthy immune systems, shingles can last for weeks.

Lets examine the different stages of shingles, and how long each lasts:

So, from start to finish, shingles usually lasts anywhere from two to six weeks.

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What If I Have Shingles And A Poor Immune System

If you have a poor immune system and develop shingles then see your doctor straightaway. You will normally be given antiviral medication whatever your age and will be monitored for complications. People with a poor immune system include:

• People taking high-dose steroids. per day for more than one week in the previous three months. Or, children who have taken steroids within the previous three months, equivalent to prednisolone 2 mg/kg per day for at least one week, or 1 mg/kg per day for one month.)
• People on lower doses of steroids in combination with other immunosuppressant medicines.
• People taking anti-arthritis medications which can affect the bone marrow.
• People being treated with chemotherapy or generalised radiotherapy, or who have had these treatments within the previous six months.
• People who have had an organ transplant and are on immunosuppressive treatment.
• People who have had a bone marrow transplant and who are still immunosuppressed.
• People with an impaired immune system.
• People who are immunosuppressed with HIV infection.

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How Eye Shingles Are Treated

You do not have to endure shingles. With the help of your doctor, you can overcome the discomfort and help the outbreak to heal. You can also take some steps to reduce the frequency and severity of your outbreaks.

The key is to get help within three days of the start of an outbreak. That is the moment at which your immune system is still strong but could use a little boost. Antiviral medications can tamp down the virus and send it back to the nerve root, so you will feel a bit more comfortable.

You will still be at risk for future outbreaks, as shingles can’t be cured. But the treatment can keep the excruciating pain and damage at bay.

Your doctor may ask you to spend a few days in the hospital. You will get around-the-clock care for your outbreak, and your doctor can watch the infection carefully and step in if sight-stealing complications appear.

When you are released to your home, there are plenty of things you can do to ease your discomfort. The American Academy of Ophthalmology recommends:

• Cool compresses. A moist, damp towel placed over your closed eyes can relieve some of your pain.
• Painkillers. If your doctor agrees, you can use medications like aspirin to ease distress.
• Eye drops. Your doctor may suggest soothing drops to help your tissues knit back together.

What Are The Pain Complications Of Shingles

Many sufferers have described the pain as extremely severe, and some even require narcotic pain-relief medications.

A blistering rash usually accompanies the outbreak. New blisters continue to appear for several days, and the entire outbreak can take weeks to heal. Blisters may cover the entire path of the affected nerve, or the involvement may be patchy. Involvement of the eyes during a shingles outbreak can be particularly serious, since scarring of the cornea and permanent vision loss can result.

Another debilitating complication of shingles is known as postherpetic neuralgia. In postherpetic neuralgia, the pain of shingles persists even after the rash has healed. The diagnosis is made when pain lasts for over 30 days after an outbreak. This pain can last for weeks, months, or even years. Up to 15% of people with shingles have this persistent pain, and it is not understood why the pain persists in some people, but it is likely that some type of nerve damage or inflammation occurs during the outbreak that leads to continued pain.

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What Are The Symptoms

The first sign of shingles is often burning, sharp pain, tingling, or numbness in your skin on one side of your body or face. The most common site is the back or upper abdomen. You may have severe itching or aching. You also may feel tired and ill with fever, chills, headache, and upset stomach or belly pain.

One to 14 days after you start feeling pain, you will notice a rash of small blisters on reddened skin. Within a few days after they appear, the blisters will turn yellow, then dry and crust over. Over the next 2 weeks the crusts drop off, and the skin continues to heal over the next several days to weeks.

Because shingles usually follows nerve paths, the blisters are usually found in a line, often extending from the back or side around to the belly. The blisters are almost always on just one side of the body. Shingles usually doesn’t cross the midline of the body. The rash also may appear on one side of your face or scalp. The painful rash may be in the area of your ear or eye. When shingles occurs on the head or scalp, symptoms can include headaches and weakness of one side of the face, which causes that side of the face to look droopy. The symptoms usually go away eventually, but it may take many months.

In some cases the pain can last for weeks, months, or years, long after the rash heals. This is called postherpetic neuralgia.

Experiences On How Long Shingles Last

Greetings everybody!

Hope you guys are having a good day so far.

I wanted to ask everybodys experience on the first time you had shingles how long did it last from the first first stage until the last stage where the rash and blisters went away from the affected areas.

Im currently on day 7 and on the stage where Im noticing the red spots rash are turning into blisters and getting really painful. I have to sleep on a certain angle to get a good nights rest. Since the shingles is affecting my lower left chest, side and back.

Any feedback or experience would be appreciated. Thanks!

1 like, 18 replies

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Can Other People Catch Shingles

This one is confusing! You can catch chickenpox from other people, but you can’t catch shingles from other people. You only get shingles from a reactivation of your own chickenpox infection in the past.

So if you have shingles, and you come into contact with somebody else, they cannot ‘catch’ your shingles. But if they have never had chickenpox, it is possible that they could catch chickenpox from you.

To put it another way, no, you don’t ‘catch’ shingles. It comes from a virus hiding out in your own body, not from someone else. But if you have shingles, you may be infectious, as it is possible for people to catch chickenpox from you.

Only people who have never had chickenpox are likely to be at risk of catching chickenpox from your shingles. People who have had chickenpox should be immune from catching it again. If the rash is in a covered area of skin, the risk of anyone with whom you are not in close contact catching chickenpox is very low.

Antiviral Medicines For Shingles

Antiviral medicines used to treat shingles include aciclovir, famciclovir and valaciclovir. An antiviral medicine is not a cure for shingles, it does not kill the virus but works by stopping the virus from multiplying. So, it may limit the severity of symptoms of the shingles episode.

An antiviral medicine is most useful when started in the early stages of shingles . However, in some cases your doctor may still advise you have an antiviral medicine even if the rash is more than 72 hours old – particularly in elderly people with severe shingles, or if shingles affects an eye.

Antiviral medicines are not advised routinely for everybody with shingles. As a general rule, the following groups of people who develop shingles will normally be advised to take an antiviral medicine:

• If you are over the age of 50. The older you are, the more risk there is of severe shingles or complications developing and the more likely you are to benefit from treatment.
• If you are of any age and have any of the following:
• Shingles that affects the eye or ear.
• A poorly functioning immune system .
• Shingles that affects any parts of the body apart from the trunk .
• Moderate or severe pain.

If prescribed, a course of an antiviral medicine normally lasts seven days.

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Diagnosis Of Shingles In The Eye

Your doctor should be able to diagnose shingles just by looking at the rash on your eyelids, scalp, and body. Your doctor might take a sample of fluid from the blisters and send it out to a lab to test for the varicella-zoster virus.

An eye doctor will examine:

• help the rash fade more quickly

Starting the medicine within three days after your rash appears can help you avoid long-term shingles complications.

To reduce swelling in your eye, your doctor might also give you a steroid medicine in the form of a pill or eye drops. If you develop postherpetic neuralgia, pain medicine and antidepressants can help relieve the nerve pain.

How Can You Prevent Spreading The Virus

You cant give shingles to someone else, but the varicella-zoster virus is very contagious. If you have shingles and you expose someone else who has not had chickenpox or the chickenpox vaccine, you can give them the virus. Theyll get chickenpox, not shingles, but this puts them at risk for shingles later on.

Youre contagious when your blisters are oozing, or after they break and before they crust over. Do the following to avoid spreading the virus to others:

• Keep your rash covered, especially when the blisters are active.
• Try not to touch, rub, or scratch your rash.
• Wash your hands thoroughly and often.

Avoid contact with people whove never had chickenpox or the chickenpox vaccine, especially:

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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.

Am I At Risk For Shingles

Everyone who has had chickenpox is at risk for developing shingles. Researchers do not fully understand what makes the virus become active and cause shingles. But some things make it more likely:

• Older age. The risk of developing shingles increases as you age. About half of all shingles cases are in adults age 60 or older. The chance of getting shingles becomes much greater by age 70.
• Trouble fighting infections. Your immune system is the part of your body that responds to infections. Age can affect your immune system. So can HIV, cancer, cancer treatments, too much sun, and organ transplant drugs. Even stress or a cold can weaken your immune system for a short time. These all can put you at risk for shingles.

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

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What Are The Complications Of Shingles

Symptoms of shingles usually dont last longer than 3 to 5 weeks. However, complications can happen. The main complications that can result from shingles include:

• Postherpetic neuralgia . The most common complication of shingles is called postherpetic neuralgia . This continuous, chronic pain lasts even after the skin lesions have healed. The pain may be severe in the area where the blisters were present. The affected skin may be very sensitive to heat and cold. If you had severe pain during the active rash or have impaired senses, you are at increased risk for PHN. The elderly are also at greater risk. Early treatment of shingles may prevent PHN. Pain relievers and steroid treatment may be used to treat the pain and inflammation. 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.

What Are The Symptoms Of Shingles

Usually, shingles develops on just one side of the body or face, and in a small area. The most common place for shingles to occur is in a band around one side of the waistline.

Most people with shingles have one or more of the following symptoms:

• Fluid-filled blisters
• Tingling, itching, or numbness of the skin
• Chills, fever, headache, or upset stomach

For some people, the symptoms of shingles are mild. They might just have some itching. For others, shingles can cause intense pain that can be felt from the gentlest touch or breeze. Its important to talk with your doctor if you notice any shingles symptoms.

If you notice blisters on your face, see your doctor right away because this is an urgent problem. Blisters near or in the eye can cause lasting eye damage and blindness. Hearing loss, a brief paralysis of the face, or, very rarely, inflammation of the brain can also occur.

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