Shingles: Blisters and rashes might be more dangerous than you think What is Shingles? Shingles is a type of infection that takes place in the nerve of an individual or at the surface of skin supplied by the nerve. Both adults and children might likely trap into the problem of shingles after he or she recovers from the problem of chickenpox. Shingles Virus Shingles take place in human beings from the virus called Varicella Zoster i.e. the same virus results in the problem of chickenpox. After a person recovers from the disease of chickenpox, the virus remains present in his body but in dormant condition within the central nervous system. Varicella Zoster virus categorizes itself as herpes virus, because of which medical experts call shingles as herpes zoster. All types of herpes viruses remain in hidden condition within the nervous system in almost indefinite manner. Thus, when viruses get right conditions, herpes zoster virus reactivates or wakes up from its hibernate state and travel down towards the fibers of a patient’s nerve to create many new active infections.
Is Shingles Contagious? Individuals, who never suffered from the disease of chickenpox or never received vaccination to prevent chickenpox, usually remain susceptible towards viral infection of shingles. However, the positive thing is that rash of shingles is not infectious, as a rash from a particular person fails to spread in another one. In this way, the disease is not contagious directly. In fact, shingles pass viruses from their active blisters of rash directly to other people, who then suffer infection with varicella zoster virus if the individual does not possess adequate immune towards VZV virus and develop the problem of chickenpox, while chickenpox infection may result in shingles in few people later during their lives. Based on this fact, doctors consider shingles as indirectly contagious.