Shingles and Zostavax

[marion324]

I had shingles several years ago and occasionally get post-herpetic neuralgia. Will the Zostavax shot prevent a re-occurrence of shingles?

[Purple98Lady]

Heres a link regarding Zoxtavax:


http://www.merck.com/product/usa/pi_circulars/z/zostavax/zostavax_ppi.pdf

[dmongking]

It will not prevent it but it will shorten the duration of the infection.

[marion324]

Thank you for answering. My doctor said that if I went 1 year without symptoms I should get the vaccination.
Marion

[dmongking]

Go ahead and get vaccinated then. This is the best thing to do.

[christinedwrds]

what about Zovirax, Famvir, Valtrex?Anybody tried any of these?

[kallishell]

I've heard the Zostavax vaccine isn't very effective.The herpes zoster vaccine is a live virus that is injected beneath the skin.Unlike the hidden, dormant virus in the nerves, the injected virus can be more easily found by the immune system so that it can make antibodies.Shingles is a painful skin rash that occurs in older people and people who are immunosuppressed due to other diseases or treatment with immune-suppressing drugs.