Get your health question answered instantly from our pool of 18000+ doctors from over 80 specialties
148 Doctors Online

By proceeding, I accept the Terms and Conditions

Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

HCM Blog Instant Access to Doctors
HCM BlogQuestions Answered
HCM Blog Satisfaction

Suggest Treatment For Shingles

I have had shingles for 3 and half weeks. No blisters now, just scabs. But I also have a fairly large swelling, where there are no blisters or rash. I still have quite severe pain and bad itching. Any suggestions? Also how long can I expect to have symptoms?
posted on Tue, 18 Nov 2014
Twitter Mon, 2 Feb 2015 Answered on
Twitter Mon, 2 Feb 2015 Last reviewed on
Report Abuse
Dermatologist,  's  Response
Hello. Thank you for writing to us at healthcaremagic

Shingles usually presents as pain and fluid filled lesions in a stripe like pattern, along a dermatome.
While these fluid filled lesions usually dry up and scab in a few days i.e 7-10 days, pain may last for a few more days and is then known as herpes associated neuralgia/ HAN and if it lasts longer than a month after resolution of shingles, it is known as PHN/ Post herpetic Neuralgia.
Neuralgic pain is due to inflammation and damage to cutaneous nerves.
Management of pain is symptomatic i.e with oral NSAID's like ibuprofen.
Oral tricyclic antidepressants like amytriptyline, nortryptyline etc may also be considered for neuralgic pain as can agents like carbamzepine, gabapentin, pregabalin etc.
All of these agents are helpful in various other conditions associated with neuralgic pain e.g diabetic neuropathy etc.
These are all prescription drugs and sometimes may be required to be administered for weeks or months and therefore I suggest you to visit a dermatologist or a neurologist in your region for the needful.

Regards
I find this answer helpful

1 Doctor agrees with this answer

Disclaimer: These answers are for your information only and not intended to replace your relationship with your treating physician.
This is a short, free answer. For a more detailed, immediate answer, try our premium service [Sample answer]
Share on
 

Related questions you may be interested in


Loading Online Doctors....
Suggest Treatment For Shingles

Hello. Thank you for writing to us at healthcaremagic Shingles usually presents as pain and fluid filled lesions in a stripe like pattern, along a dermatome. While these fluid filled lesions usually dry up and scab in a few days i.e 7-10 days, pain may last for a few more days and is then known as herpes associated neuralgia/ HAN and if it lasts longer than a month after resolution of shingles, it is known as PHN/ Post herpetic Neuralgia. Neuralgic pain is due to inflammation and damage to cutaneous nerves. Management of pain is symptomatic i.e with oral NSAID s like ibuprofen. Oral tricyclic antidepressants like amytriptyline, nortryptyline etc may also be considered for neuralgic pain as can agents like carbamzepine, gabapentin, pregabalin etc. All of these agents are helpful in various other conditions associated with neuralgic pain e.g diabetic neuropathy etc. These are all prescription drugs and sometimes may be required to be administered for weeks or months and therefore I suggest you to visit a dermatologist or a neurologist in your region for the needful. Regards