Herpes zoster tends to increase

Vaccination - Photo: BVCC

According to the Dermatology Hospital of Ho Chi Minh City, the number of patients with shingles coming for examination and treatment at this hospital also tends to increase, including many severe cases of shingles due to treatment using the "dia cau" method (dia cau" means drawing ink to circle the blisters).

Postherpetic neuralgia not only severely reduces the quality of life but also makes the patient mentally tired and stressed. Many patients with postherpetic neuralgia complications are exhausted due to pain that lasts for decades, even throughout their lives.

Associate Professor Hoang Thi Lam

Anyone who has had chickenpox can get shingles.

At Tam Anh General Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City alone, about 1,000 cases of shingles are admitted each year, of which 15-20% of shingles cases have complications due to patients self-treating at home.

Dr. Bach Thi Chinh, medical director of the VNVC Vaccination System, said that both chickenpox and shingles are caused by the same pathogen, the Varicella Zoster virus (VZV). Anyone who has had chickenpox can get shingles.

The reason is that after recovering from chickenpox, the virus is not completely eliminated but "hibernates" in the nerve roots. They reactivate to cause shingles when encountering favorable conditions such as old age, immunodeficiency, underlying diseases, stress, worries in life...

According to data from the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO), 99% of people over 50 years old have had chickenpox, although they may not remember the symptoms or may have had a mild illness with no obvious symptoms.

In Vietnam, the risk of shingles increases every year due to adults being exposed to the chickenpox virus and thousands of cases of chickenpox each year. In addition, the aging population means that each person can have multiple chronic diseases at the same time...

Shingles manifests in infected people with red rash, blisters, vesicles concentrated in clusters, clusters along the distribution of peripheral nerves, usually on one side of the body. The disease can cause many dangerous complications.

The case of Mrs. Bui Thi Thanh Hai, 72 years old, living in Thu Duc City, Ho Chi Minh City is an example. Mrs. Hai said she had shingles 3 years ago and it recurred many times, causing pain and discomfort in different areas of the body such as the lips, eyes, and forehead.

The worst case was when the shingles blisters appeared in the eye area, causing swelling and affecting her vision, making her vision much more blurry than before.

"Every time I get sick, I can't do anything. This disease greatly affects my spirit. I'm very scared and haunted by the recurrence of the disease..." - Ms. Hai said.

Pulling out all the teeth still doesn't cure the pain.

Nowadays, many people on social networking groups often guide each other with folk remedies to treat shingles such as chewing bitter melon shoots, green beans and applying them on blisters or applying balm, honey, or drawing ink to circle the blisters. So is treatment according to these tips effective?

Doctor CKII Vu Thi Phuong Thao - member of the Executive Committee of the Vietnam Dermatology Association, head of clinical department 1 of Ho Chi Minh City Dermatology Hospital - said that shingles blisters follow the distribution of nerves so they often appear on one half of the body.

Shingles is best treated with antiviral medication within 72 hours of the appearance of the lesions. Scratching the wound or drawing on it, applying green beans, herbal medicine, or folk remedies will delay treatment, increase the risk of infection, and cause ulcers and skin irritation. People with suspected shingles should see a doctor for timely treatment.

Associate Professor Hoang Thi Lam - Head of the Department of Clinical Immunology, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City - said that the virus residing in the nerve roots continues to cause persistent painful symptoms lasting for months and years for patients after the shingles lesions have healed. Up to 30% of cases have post-herpetic neuralgia. This is the most common complication of the disease. People over 50 years old have a 15-25 times higher risk of post-herpetic neuralgia than people under 30 years old.

Doctors say that post-herpetic neuralgia is characterized by severe aching and burning pain. The pain is described as sharp thorns piercing the skin, like being burned by boiling water, severe pain in the ribs..., the level of pain of shingles is even described as more severe than the pain of women during childbirth. There are cases where shingles cause pain in the face, making the patient think it is a toothache, even having all the teeth pulled does not relieve the pain.

Patients with post-herpetic neuralgia are often given painkillers, and in difficult-to-control cases, antidepressants may be used. Treatments only provide some relief and do not cure the pain.

Watch out for complications

According to doctors, in addition to common neurological complications, patients also experience many complications in other organs. These complications include skin damage, high levels of pain, persistent nerve pain, blindness, facial paralysis, pneumonia, hepatitis, encephalitis, meningitis, stroke...

To proactively prevent shingles, experts recommend that people get vaccinated against chickenpox and shingles, monitor their health, exercise regularly, eat scientifically, and get adequate rest...

When shingles lesions appear, especially in sensitive areas such as the right side of the face or eyes, patients need to see a dermatologist immediately to limit eye damage, avoid the risk of vision loss or blindness, and facial scarring.

The herpes zoster vaccine produced by GSK Pharmaceutical Company has been approved by the Ministry of Health. As a comprehensive strategic partner with the manufacturer, the VNVC Vaccination System will deploy this vaccine for the first time in Vietnam from early October.

Doctor checks patient's health - Photo: BVCC

Online consultation on shingles disease and vaccine

To help more people understand this dangerous disease, Tuoi Tre newspaper in collaboration with the VNVC Vaccination System organized an online consultation session "The dangers of shingles, chickenpox & introduction of new vaccines" from 10:30 to 12:00 on October 4, 2024.

Experts attending the online consultation include:

* Associate Professor Hoang Thi Lam , Head of Clinical Immunology Department, Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City

* Dr. Le Van Tuan , Director of the Neuroscience Center at Tam Anh General Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City

* MD, PhD Bach Thi Chinh , medical director of VNVC Vaccination System

The program will also be livestreamed on the channels:

* Fanpage, YouTube of VNVC Vaccination System

* Tuoi Tre Online, Fanpage & YouTube of Tuoi Tre newspaper

* VTV8 - Vietnam Television Station

* Fanpage of Vinh Long Radio and Television Station & YouTube of Vinh Long Television

* Media channels: fanpage, YouTube of Tam Anh General Hospital, Nutrihome Nutrition Center.

Symptoms of shingles

According to doctors, shingles often begins with unusual sensations such as itching, burning, or tingling in an area of ​​skin on one side of the body.

Some people also have fever, fatigue, or headache. Within 1 to 2 days, a rash of blisters appears on one side of the body in a strip-like pattern.

Shingles rashes usually affect the trunk (chest, abdomen, and back). However, the rash can appear on almost any part of the body.

The pain of shingles can be mild or severe and burning. The pain may begin several days before the rash appears.

The pain is limited to the parts of the skin affected by the rash, but it can be severe enough to interfere with daily activities and sleep. Pain is often more severe in older adults.

Within 3 to 4 days, the shingles blisters may turn into open sores. In people with healthy immune systems, the sores will crust over and become no longer contagious by day 7 to 10, and the rash usually disappears within 3 to 4 weeks.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/zona-than-kinh-co-xu-huong-gia-tang-20241003225346073.htm