Shingles: Those who have not had chickenpox are more likely to contract it

Created: 06/30/2022Updated: 06/30/2022 07:52

By: Jasmin Pospiech

Chickenpox and shingles have one thing in common: they are caused by the same pathogen.

But how great is the risk of infection?

Cologne – Painful, annoying and tedious: Shingles is a viral disease that severely restricts many sufferers in everyday life.

Eventually, the condition usually causes a red, blister-filled rash that is very uncomfortable.

In addition, the pain sometimes extends to the arms and legs and there are other symptoms such as exhaustion, back pain or even feverish episodes.

In addition, it can take several weeks for the shingles (also called "herpes zoster") to get over.

Shingles: Those who have not had chickenpox are more likely to contract it

Those who have never had chickenpox have a higher risk of contracting it.

© YAY Images/Imago

Because shingles is a serious disease that can ultimately lead to serious complications such as a brain infection.

Affected people experience in a painful way the serious long-term effects of shingles, such as a stroke and chronic pain, as these two patients report.

The disease is caused by infection with the varicella zoster virus (VZV).

This virus also causes another disease: chickenpox (varicella).

As a rule, the first person to become infected with the varicella-zoster virus is to get chickenpox.

This usually happens in childhood.

After the disease has healed, the viruses remain in the body and nest in the so-called spinal ganglia, the collections of nerve cell bodies along the spinal cord.

There they can then slumber unnoticed for years without causing any symptoms.

If they are activated again, the viruses spread along the nerve tracts and cause inflammation of the nerve tissue there.

As a result, the typical red, painful rash ("zoster") of shingles occurs in the affected area of ​​skin.

For people who have had chickenpox before, the risk of infection is very low.

Instead, the viral disease is triggered by other influences and then breaks out later in life.

The most common reasons are:

• stress and trauma

• immunodeficiency

• UV radiation

• Drugs that weaken the immune system

• other infections

• AIDS

• cancers

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It's different for people who haven't had chickenpox before.

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Shingles: Smear infection can transmit varicella-zoster viruses

While chickenpox is considered extremely contagious and is transmitted by droplet infection, the virus-containing content of the skin vesicles poses a major risk of infection with shingles. In the case of droplet infection, it is sufficient to be close to someone infected with chickenpox, as the pathogens spread spread through the air, for example by breathing, speaking or coughing.

In order to get shingles, you have to come into direct contact with an infected person, more specifically with the secretion from the vesicles.

If you have not had chickenpox or have not been vaccinated against it, you can become infected with the varicella-zoster virus.

According to the protection against infection, this happens by means of the smear infection.

For example, if a healthy person touches a patient's rash or objects that the patient previously held in their hands.

If an infection with the pathogen occurs, the first thing you will experience is chickenpox.

Once it has survived, the inactive viruses remain in the body.

This article only contains general information on the respective health topic and is therefore not intended for self-diagnosis, treatment or medication.

In no way does it replace a visit to the doctor.

Unfortunately, our editors are not allowed to answer individual questions about clinical pictures.