Symptoms and Complications
When the virus becomes active again, you may get symptoms such as rash,
upset stomach, headache, fever, and the chills. These symptoms are often
preceded by warning signs (the prodrome) in the days before the rash appears.
The rash produces painful, fluid-filled blisters, and you'll feel tingling or
burning sensations.
When the varicella-zoster virus enters its "quiet" phase after chickenpox,
it remains dormant in certain nerves. The shingles rash will break out in the
areas of the body connected to those nerve cells. As a result, only one section
or one side of the body is often affected. Common sites for the rash include
the chest, back, buttocks, neck, and sometimes the face and scalp.
The rash itself is reddish, with many tiny, fluid-filled blisters. For
a few days, the rash spreads, although its extent varies from one person to
another. The rash commonly occurs on one side of the trunk of your body as a
band of blisters that go from the middle of your back around one side of your
chest to your breastbone. The blisters will break, dry out, and then crust over.
From before the time the rash erupts until after it's healed, you'll be
itchy - in some cases, the rash can be extremely painful. The rash usually
lasts about seven to ten days and completely disappears after one month. The
pain can last for up to three months or longer in a very small percentage of
people. While you will likely have only one bout of the disease, some people
may get it several times.
If your immune system isn't working at full capacity, your rash and symptoms
will be more severe and take longer to heal, which can lead to scarring.
The virus can also spread to other organs in your body, but this is rare for
people with healthy immune systems.
Post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) is one of the complications of shingles.
It is characterized by severe pain along affected nerves. It can last for several
weeks, even after your blisters have cleared up. The cause of PHN is not known.
Other complications can occur if the virus spreads up the nerve that connects
to your eyes. This may result in an eye infection or eye pain triggered by exposure
to light. Your eye doctor should be consulted immediately if shingles in the
eye area is suspected. If left untreated, the virus can cause blindness. If
the virus spreads to two particular nerves in your face, then a condition called
Ramsay Hunt syndrome can develop. This can lead to temporary facial paralysis
and loss of hearing and taste.