Diagnosed with shingles today -- riding okay?

[OtayBW]

Originally Posted by Keith A

Thanks for asking. Long story, but I ended up going to the doctor last Friday, which was almost two after my initial outbreak. When he looked at my "rash" and heard my symptoms, he wasn't convinced that I had the shingles as I was missing some of the typical symptoms.

Glad it wasn't shingles. I had my doubts because normally, when you have it, you know you are sick and you are down....

[Keith A]

Originally Posted by OtayBW

Glad it wasn't shingles. I had my doubts because normally, when you have it, you know you are sick and you are down....

Actually, the doctors do think it is shingles...just not a classic case. I am very grateful that is has been as manageable as it has been. After doing a fair amount of reading, this can be a very bad disease which can be debilitating and a life altering event.

[gasman]

Keith -I'm glad to hear your OK. Quite a coincidence about your daughter, hope you both recover completely.

[Keith A]

Originally Posted by gasman

Keith -I'm glad to hear your OK. Quite a coincidence about your daughter, hope you both recover completely.

Thanks

[JAGI410]

I just got over this, and it sucked! I'm not really stressed so I'm unsure of the trigger. It felt like I had a pinched nerve in my back for a few days, then it spread to my shoulder, like as if someone was trying to cut out my shoulder blade. Couldn't lay down, couldn't sleep, the pain was the worse I've ever felt. Rash was minor just 2 small patches on my side and back, and I had attributed it to all the trail building work I've been doing. I must have brushed against something out in the woods, but I was wrong!

Finally went to urgent care and was quickly diagnosed with shingles. Valtrex, Tylenol with codeine, and a muscle relaxer. Pain went down to a manageable level in 5 days, rash is still barley visible. Rash pain didn't start until I took the pills, or maybe it's that the shoulder pain was so intense I couldn't feel it. Felt like the left side of my torso was badly sunburnt.

In hindsight I should have gone to the doctor 3 days sooner and I would have been spared some misery. Just now feeling up to riding distances longer than my commute!

[Hawker]

Very sorry to hear Keith, all the best for a quick recovery.

And everyone else....there is a vaccine for this. Generally not cheap but to my mind very good insurance to have against this painful condition.

[Keith A]

Thanks everyone...and JAGI410, I'm sorry to hear you've had this too. As I have discovered, this is much more common than I realized.

I wanted to share a few things I've learned about this disease:

o The anti-viral medication is only effective if this is started within 72 hours of the initial symptoms. This can be tricky, since some of the first symptoms may be pain and not an outbreak of the rash on your skin.

o The vaccine is approved for anyone over 50. The problem is that this isn't effective forever. According to the CDC, this lasts for about 5 years...but my doctor claims this is realistically longer than this, but he couldn't say how long. He also said that this was more effective if taken younger rather than older...but the problem is that if you get shingles when you are older, it can often be much worse. So it's a bit of a gamble when to get the vaccine. He also said that the are in the final stages with a new vaccine which is supposed to be much better than the current one.

o My doctor mentioned that there is a big question about what will happen to all the people who were vaccinated for chicken pox as a child. They don't know if they will be susceptible to chicken pox as an adult and if they will need to develop a booster for this vaccine. He said you really don't want to get the chicken pox as adult as most of his patients who do have ended up in the hospital.

[PaulE]

Originally Posted by Hawker

Very sorry to hear Keith, all the best for a quick recovery.

And everyone else....there is a vaccine for this. Generally not cheap but to my mind very good insurance to have against this painful condition.

My mom had shingles in her 80's and it was very painful. The vaccine used to only be recommended for people age 60 and above, but the recommended age has been lowered to 50 now. Many insurance companies will now cover the vaccine for anyone at least 50, mine did 3 years ago. If you had chicken pox then you have the virus within you that can give you shingles.

Lots of chain pharmacies have the vaccine and can administer it as long as you have a prescription from your doctor. But you need to call ahead to the pharmacy, confirm they have it and make an appointment. This is because the vaccine is kept frozen and prepared right before being administered, I think it takes 30 minutes to prepare.

For the vaccinated, we may still get shingles but if so it should be much less severe than it otherwise would have been without the vaccine. Also, the jury is still out on how long the vaccine lasts and whether or not there will eventually be booster shots for the previously vaccinated, so keep an eye on the news or at least ask your doctor periodically.

Keith, sorry to hear you got this and hope you recover fully and fast.

[Keith A]

Thanks PaulE. Your information is exactly what I've read online and learned from my doctor.

[scooter]

The current shingles vaccine, Zostavax - developed by Merck, is basically a larger than normal dose of the chickenpox vaccine. It's only around 50% effective for those over 60. A new vaccine, HZ/su, is being developed by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) that has shown 97% efficacy for all age groups in a stage III clinical trial involving 16,000 patients. They have two additional stage III trials (37,000 patients) underway for the critical over age 70 segment, where shingles does the most damage, including post herpetic neuralgia (PHN). My mother contracted shingles about 15 years ago at age 75 and has suffered from PHN since that time. She currently is on a maintenance dosage of gabapentin.

[scooter]

I think GSK is going to market the new vaccine with the name Shingrix, FWIW.

[Keith A]

Originally Posted by scooter

The current shingles vaccine, Zostavax - developed by Merck, is basically a larger than normal dose of the chickenpox vaccine. It's only around 50% effective for those over 60. A new vaccine, HZ/su, is being developed by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) that has shown 97% efficacy for all age groups in a stage III clinical trial involving 16,000 patients. They have two additional stage III trials (37,000 patients) underway for the critical over age 70 segment, where shingles does the most damage, including post herpetic neuralgia (PHN). My mother contracted shingles about 15 years ago at age 75 and has suffered from PHN since that time. She currently is on a maintenance dosage of gabapentin.

Great information. Any idea when GSK will be available for the general public?

[scooter]

GSK plans to file for FDA approval on Shingrix later this year, so the earliest availability is sometime in 2017 for the U.S. I don't know what they plan for the EU.

[gasman]

Originally Posted by scooter

GSK plans to file for FDA approval on Shingrix later this year, so the earliest availability is sometime in 2017 for the U.S. I don't know what they plan for the EU.

Thanks !

The knowledge base here is fantastic.

[Hawker]

Originally Posted by gasman

Thanks !

The knowledge base here is fantastic.

I'll say. Who do I talk to about an office visit? Time for my prostate exam.