Just about everyone has heard of chickenpox, a very contagious disorder characterized by an itchy, blistery rash. It is caused by the varicella-zoster virus. In fact, 99 out of 100 U.S. adults, who are currently over 50 years of age, have had chickenpox as a child. About twenty-five years ago, an FDA-approved vaccine against chickenpox was developed. Since then, the number of chickenpox cases in the United States has plummeted. Because of the high effectiveness of the vaccine, the vast majority of young people in the U.S. have never experienced this disorder.
For all the older folks, the chickenpox virus is not a thing of the past. For many individuals, the chickenpox virus continues to exist in a dormant state in their bodies throughout life. Out of every 3 older adults, 1 of them will experience re-activation of the varicella-zoster virus in their lifetime. When this happens, an illness is known as “shingles” occurs. Shingles is a painful skin eruption caused by reactivation of the chickenpox virus.
Because the virus reactivates in the nerves emerging from a single spinal root, the rash is limited to a single band of the body, known as a dermatome. It usually affects one side of the body. Zietchick Research Institute explains that when shingles affect the eye(or the skin around the eye), it is called herpes zoster ophthalmicus. Herpes zoster ophthalmicus causes blisters around the eye and the forehead. When shingles affect the eye, it can cause drooping of the eyelid, ocular eye, and problems on the cornea. Sometimes, permanent vision loss can occur.
In 2017, the FDA approved a new shingles vaccine caused by Shingrix. Clinical trials have shown that this new vaccine prevents shingles in 9 out of 10 vaccine recipients. Because our immune function decreases as we age, the chances of virus reactivation increase in older adults. For this reason, the shingles vaccine is recommended for adults after the age of 50 years old. Common reactions to the vaccine are pain, redness, and swelling at the vaccination site. Shingrix is administered as a 2 dose shot, with the second vaccine given at 2-6 months after the first vaccine. Zietchick Research Institute recommends that you speak to your doctor about getting the shingles vaccine. It can help protect your eyes, and the rest of your body, against painful inflammation of the nerve ganglia, known as shingles.
