Shingles complications.Dear Dr. SerVaas, How soon after an attack of shingles is one rather home-free of fearing post-herpetic neuralgia Post-herpetic neuralgia Lingering pain that can last for years after an attack of shingles. Mentioned in: Electrical Nerve Stimulation ? Does it usually come in weeks, months? Neurologists define post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) The term used to describe the pain after the rash associated with herpes zoster is gone. Mentioned in: Shingles PHN Postherpetic neuralgia, see there ) as pain that persists or recurs one or more months after the shingles rash has subsided. Studies show that up to 14 percent of shingles sufferers continue to experience pain one month after onset; 5 percent at 3 months; and 3 percent at one year. Older people and those with a severe rash--especially if it involves the trigeminal nerve trigeminal nerve n. The chief sensory nerve of the face and the motor nerve of the muscles of chewing. The nuclei of the nerve are in the mesencephalon and in the pons and extend down into the cervical portion of the spinal cord. of the face or the brachial plexus brachial plexus n. A network of nerves located in the neck and axilla, composed of the anterior branches of the lower four cervical and first two thoracic spinal nerves and supplying the chest, shoulder, and arm. of the arm--are at most risk of' post-herpetic neuralgia. At age 60, approximately 60 percent of patients with shingles develop the condition; at age 70, nearly 75 percent are affected. Many PHN patients respond to anti-seizure medicines and pain-relieving drugs such as tricyclic antidepressants Antidepressants, Tricyclic Definition Tricyclic antidepressants are medicines that relieve mental depression. Purpose Since their discovery in the 1950s, tricyclic antidepressants have been used to treat mental depression. . Research continues on new options for hard-to-treat cases. |
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