What are symptoms and signs of shingles?
Usually the first sign of shingles is a tingling sensation or burning pain of the skin on one part of the body, on one side only. Sometimes you also get a fever and feel sick. One to three days later, a blistering rash appears in the affected area. The blisters follow along the path of a nerve on that side of the body. The pain usually comes before the rash. This makes it difficult to diagnose at the early stages, before the rash is present. The rash can be painful, it may be severe, and may last for weeks. The blisters gradually crust over and heal, and the rash usually disappears within four to six weeks. Unfortunately, the pain may last long after the rash heals. This is known as “postherpetic neuralgia”. Are shingles catching? You cannot “catch” shingles from someone else with shingles. However, people who have never had chickenpox can get chickenpox after direct contact with a broken shingles blisters. If someone has had chickenpox, there is no risk. Once all the blisters are crus
