Chickenpox

[Robinia]

Does chickenpox cause shingles (in someone who's had chickenpox)? Can't find a site that gives a straight answer. Can you have chickenpox more than once?

[andy hughes]

Shingles is a different strain of the chickenpox virus, so yes, you can have shingles if you;ve had chickenpox, as I can confirm from painful experience. The pain does go ... eventually!

[kags]

Well I am not a doctor, but my daughter had shingles and this is what my gp told me - you get chickenpox, usually as a child, then the virus sticks around in your body fending off further chickenpox viruses, so it is extremely rare to get chickenpox twice. However, in some people, often due to general ill health, or sometimes as a result of stress, the virus reactivates itself as shingles. You cannot therefore catch shingles, you would actually catch chickenpox from an infectious person (if you hadn't already had it), and this can be very nasty in an adult or elderly person. As I say, this is what I was told by my GP, please do not rely on it if you are worried about somebody's health!

[kags]

ps, if you think about it, parents of children with chickenpox do not routinely get shingles (thank goodness!)

[Robinia]

Thanks! Some sites say you can catch c'pox from someone with shingles but none said whether the reverse was true.

[Greedyfly]

Shingles apparently lies dormant and can do for years then when someone is stressed or has a cold etc... it flares up.

[Greedyfly]

I have also had chickenpox 3 times

[Robinia]

Oh no Greedyfly, really? As an adult? I had chickenpox at 26 & was very ill, the doc almost swore when he saw me! I certainly don't want it again.

[woofgang]

kags has it right. It is a dormant chicken pox virus in a nerve root that causes shingles. that's why it has a defined spread (wherever the nerve runs) why it is sooooo painful and why it can have nasty side effects, post shingles pain, affected sight or hearing (infected optic or auditory nerves) or in extremely rare cases a temporary paralysis of a limb. The pustules and fluid are infectious for chicken pox, but basically you get shingles from your own stored virus. And yes, you can have it more than once in the same or different nerves

[Greedyfly]

Shingles can also cause men to become infertile

[Hamish]

Chicken Pox, Shingles, Herpies and cold sores are all caused by various strains of the Herpies virus. This lies domant in the nevous tissue of a person for the rest of their life (unless treated, wich is still very difficult). This is why both shingles and cold sores can reoccour, both are the result of the virus progessing down the nreves resuting in inflamation at the skin (under the ribs initially in shingles, or around the mouth in cold sores). Both are contagious when the inflamation is apparent. I hope this adds something more to the discussion.

[shinyhappy]

Right. Straight answer. When you have chicken pox, even after you fight it off, some of it stays in your body. this helps you to fight it off if you get re-infected (i.e. your body reacts so fast, you don't even know you've got it.) However, if you have a lowered immune system, due to stress, or another illness usually, this pox can flare up into shingles. This causes a painful rash all around the torso, and can last for several weeks. Its something to do with nerve endings being damaged. Once you've fought off shingles, you cannot catch it again (unless you have severe illnesses like AIDS or cancer.) Incidentally, it is only contagious if someone else comes into contact with the puss from scabs that form (which you'd REALLY hope wouldn't happen...) How do I know all this? because I've got shingles at the moment, and its sodding painful and I've being doing a bit of research on it... none of which has been of any use, cause it still hurts! Cxx

[Robinia]

Thanks for your suprise answer - so sorry that you're suffering - I don't suppose you're feeling very shinyhappy at the moment. There seems to have been quite a few people in my area with shingles recently. Hope it doesn't last too long - all the best. x