Shingles – treatment

Shingles Treatment: Skin Care

A careful skin care is an important part of treatment for shingles (herpes zoster). For example, disinfectant powders can prevent bacteria from settling on the affected areas of the skin. Depending on the stage, antiseptic, drying or antipruritic lotions, gels or powders are also recommended. Possible active ingredients include tannins, zinc, menthol or podicanol.

Cooling, moist envelopes can be beneficial if bubbles have already formed. They sometimes help with symptoms like pain and itching.

Shingles Treatment: Painkillers

The acute pain in shingles can be alleviated with painkillers. Sometimes moderately effective remedies such as acetaminophen or acetylsalicylic acid (ASS) are sufficient. These also reduce fever. You get them without a prescription in the pharmacy.

More severe pain often requires stronger analgesics from the group of opioids, such as tramadol. Such medications are available by prescription.

Shingles Treatment: Antivirals

Antiviral drugs are directed against the cause of shingles: the varicella-zoster virus. They inhibit the multiplication of viruses and therefore become antivirals called. Examples of this class of drugs are acyclovir, valaciclovir, foscarnet and brivudine.

Anti-viral shingles therapy can speed healing and shorten the duration of pain. The prerequisite is that you start early: Physicians recommend to start the antiviral therapy within 72 hours after the occurrence of the rash. Normally the antivirals are called tablet ingested. In case of a serious illness, the doctor can also treat it as infusion administer.

A shingles treatment with antivirals makes sense in principle. However, in some cases it is not necessary. This applies, for example, to young patients who do not have a severe form of shingles and are not expected to experience complications. In other cases, anti-viral therapy is urgently recommended, such as:

• Patients older than 50 years
• a shingles on the face, head or neck
• severe courses of a herpes zoster
• People at risk for complications (such as immunodeficiency)

Shingles treatment: other medicines

If the shingles disease affects an ear, some patients still get in addition to the antivirals cortisone, It has an anti-inflammatory effect by reducing the body’s immune response. At present, it is still unclear what advantages and disadvantages such a combination treatment has.

If a bacterial infection has developed on the shingles rash, the doctor prescribes it antibiotic, It fights the bacteria and is often used as an ointment.

Severe pain in a shingles can put a lot of psychological stress on the person affected. This is especially true if the symptoms persist even after the rash has healed (post-zoster neuralgia). In addition to strong analgesics, the doctor can therefore a mood-enhancing drug (antidepressant) prescribe.

Treatment of post-zoster neuralgia

The most common complication of shingles is post-herpetic neuralgia. It is also called postzosteric or postherpetic neuralgia. Those affected also suffer from nerve pain after the rash subsides. In addition, the skin can be hypersensitive and itchy. The complaints can last for months or even years.

The attending physician will create an individual treatment plan for each patient. An important component is analgesics. A distinction is made between two classes of active ingredients that can possibly also be used in combination:

• Non-opioid analgesics like acetylsalicylic acid or acetaminophen. They are recommended for mild to moderate symptoms and are usually available without a prescription in the pharmacy.
• Opioid painkillers like oxycodone or tramadol. They are prescribed and are prescribed only for moderate to severe pain.

Which analgesics are useful in which dosage varies from patient to patient. Above all, the type and severity of the pain play a role here. In addition, the doctor will consider how well someone responds to a painkiller and what side effects occur.

For persistent (chronic) pain, patients should seek advice and treatment from a pain therapist, pain center, or pain clinic.

Further measures for post-zoster neuralgia

Besides painkillers can also antidepressants be useful in low dosage in a post-herpetic neuralgia. They inhibit the transmission of pain signals in the spinal cord. The doctor can also antispasmodic medication prescribe: they dampen the excitability of nerve cells. This too can help against the nerve pain.

Also helpful capsaicinPreparations (such as ointment): Capsaicin is a pungent that is in the chili pepper. It triggers a burning sensation on the skin, which temporarily paralyzes the pain receptors. Alternatively, you can use a cream containing a local anesthetic (lidocaine) Instruct.

Sometimes, post-herpetic neuralgia also comes along alternative treatments for use. These include acupuncture and TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation). Some patients report that their symptoms actually improved. However, a general statement about the usefulness of such methods in post-zoster neuralgia can not be made at present.

Shingles treatment in pregnancy

According to the current state of knowledge, a shingles disease during pregnancy poses no risk for the unborn child. Affected women should still go to the doctor. Sometimes a symptomatic treatment is enough: For example, as mentioned above, the diseased parts of the skin can be treated with ointments or powders that soothe pain and itching. Other possibilities of Shingles Treatment If necessary, the doctor will discuss it with the patient.