Shingles, also known as zoster or herpes zoster, is a viral disease characterized by a painful skin rash with blisters in a localized area. Typically the rash occurs in a single, wide stripe either on the left or right side of the body or face. Two to four days before the rash occurs there may be tingling or local pain in the area. Otherwise there are typically few symptoms though some may have fever or headache, or feel tired. The rash usually heals within two to four weeks; however, some people develop ongoing nerve pain which can last for months or years, a condition called postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). In those with poor immune function the rash may occur widely. If the rash involves the eye, vision loss may occur.
Shingles and chickenpox are distinct human diseases but are closely related in their life cycles. Both originate from infection of an individual with the varicella zoster virus (VZV). Chickenpox, also called varicella, results from the initial infection with the virus, typically occurring during childhood or adolescence. Once the chickenpox has resolved, the virus can remain inactive (dormant) in human nerve cells for years or decades, after which it may reactivate. Then the virus can travel along nerve bodies to nerve endings in the skin, producing blisters. That is, shingles results from a reactivation of the dormant chickenpox virus. Notably, exposure to the shingles/varicella virus in shingles blisters can cause chickenpox (in someone who has not had chickenpox), but will not trigger shingles. How the virus remains dormant in the body or subsequently re-activates is not well understood.
4 Nursing Diagnosis for Shingles (Herpes Zoster) :
1. Acute pain related to physiological injuring agents.
2. Impaired skin integrity related to changes in pigmentation.
3. Hyperthermia related to infection.
4. Risk for infection related to insufficient knowledge to avoid exposure to pathogens.
5. Imbalanced nutrition: less than body requirements related to inability to enter, digest and absorb food due to biological factors.
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