Shingles

[kcowan]

There is no magic age for shingles. Risk increases with age, but there isn't some sharp knee. Here's some data.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4636742/

I got my shingles shot in November. Largely as a result of this thread. Also got a flu shot and a pneumonia shot. All three were firsts.

Thanks Nemo.

 

[Lakedog]

They're baaaaack..............5-6 days ago my left eye I was somewhat bloodshot, (the same eye where the shingles were* encroaching on the cornea).....I initially halfway dismissed it as an allergy/being in a draft/dry eye, etc.......saw the eye doctor again yesterday, and it's the shingles causing inflammation.

So, I'm on two sets of drops, (with a prescription for five repeats of each) - one, I take every two waking hours, the other every twelve hours.

See the doc again tomorrow afternoon. Sheesh!


(*Do you say shingles was or shingles were?)

I'm curious if you had the shingles vaccine after your previous episode? I think you mentioned you were planning to do that.

 

[Nemo2]

Neither. You gracefully avoid the potential grammatical faux pas by saying "where shingles had previously been."

"...where shingles had previously been, prior to wherever it went before it returned."

 

[Nemo2]

I'm curious if you had the shingles vaccine after your previous episode? I think you mentioned you were planning to do that.

DW already had hers, but I'm waiting to see if the doctor, (I have an appointment with him on Jan 04), advises getting it now, postponing (since I may have built up some minuscule immunity during the attack), or not bothering.

 

[Dreamer]

So sorry to hear this. Hope recovery is quick.

 

[Nemo2]

Bummer. I hope you get through this attack without eye damage.

Dr. figures "It's treatable", but didn't offer a percentage guesstimate - DW, who's applying the drops, is of the opinion that the eye has already 'improved' in the short time I've been taking them. (Of course, the 'five repeats on the prescription' indicates it may not be that easy.)

 

[Nemo2]

Sorry to hear your news Nemo. I think shingles is singular. (e.g. "shingles is similar to chickenpox")

Which was my initial thought...but then I went "Hmmmmmm".

 

[Meadbh]

DW already had hers, but I'm waiting to see if the doctor, (I have an appointment with him on Jan 04), advises getting it now, postponing (since I may have built up some minuscule immunity during the attack), or not bothering.

Here's some info on that question from a UK website. There are peer reviewed references, but I'm too lazy to look them up.

Is the shingles vaccine helpful after you’ve had the illness?

 

[Nemo2]

I got my shingles shot in November. Largely as a result of this thread. Also got a flu shot and a pneumonia shot. All three were firsts.

Thanks Nemo.

I just had a call from the Canadian Medical Association......something about "Practicing without a license..."

 

[Meadbh]

I just had a call from the Canadian Medical Association......something about "Practicing without a license..."

The CMA is a professional association. The licensing body in your area is the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. I don't see Dr. Nemo listed!
| Home | College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario

 

[Nemo2]

Here's some info on that question from a UK website. There are peer reviewed references, but I'm too lazy to look them up.

Is the shingles vaccine helpful after you’ve had the illness?

The opening paras caught my attention:

According to the NHS, the vaccine works well in people who have had shingles before and will provide protection against shingles in the future. However, having an episode of shingles will naturally boost your immune system to provide protection, so it is thought that a vaccine would provide only limited benefit if given after a recent episode of shingles. Current guidelines recommend waiting at least a year after a single episode of shingles, but in people who have two or more episodes within a year, they should have immunological investigation before being offered the vaccination.

One study based in California looked at more than 6,000 cases of shingles in people 60 years or older and followed them for an average of 2 years. After recovering from shingles, about one in six of the people in the study group were given the shingles vaccine. The numbers of people who got shingles again during the study period was low, with only 29 confirmed cases during the 2 years in both groups. The researchers concluded that the risk of a second episode was low after an episode of shingles, whether or not a vaccine was given.

 

[Nemo2]

The CMA is a professional association. The licensing body in your area is the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. I don't see Dr. Nemo listed!
| Home | College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario

Phew...dodged the bullet there.

 

[redduck]

They're baaaaack..............5-6 days ago my left eye I was somewhat bloodshot, (the same eye where the shingles were* encroaching on the cornea
(*Do you say shingles was or shingles were?)

The easy way out regarding the grammar: the same eye where the shingles be encroaching on the cornea the last time.

 

[braumeister]

Just to set your mind at ease …

The OED says shingles is plural, but the Random House Unabridged (2nd ed.) says that it can be used with either a singular or plural verb.

Since the OED gives the first use of the word in the 14th century, and people weren't quite so particular about such things in those days, I believe the grammar police will leave you alone on this one. Besides, the Random House is a newer dictionary so it's probably safe to use it either way.

What? You mean everyone doesn't have multiple unabridged dictionaries at their elbow?

 

[Nemo2]

The easy way out regarding the grammar: the same eye where the shingles be encroaching on the cornea the last time.

I forwarded the whole original post to friends/family......one response, from an MBA wielding buddy:

I don't think that there is a singular for shingles. So my guess is 'was'. Then again, I am from the hills of the Ozarks... You know, the whole 'you'uns' thing.

 

[Nemo2]

Just to set your mind at ease …

The OED says shingles is plural, but the Random House Unabridged (2nd ed.) says that it can be used with either a singular or plural verb.

Since the OED gives the first use of the word in the 14th century, and people weren't quite so particular about such things in those days, I believe the grammar police will leave you alone on this one. Besides, the Random House is a newer dictionary so it's probably safe to use it either way.

What? You mean everyone doesn't have multiple unabridged dictionaries at their elbow?

To save time, in future I shall just say..."@!%$#&^ *&%$# !*&%^$ shingles".

 

[redduck]

To save time, in future I shall just say..."@!%$#&^ *&%$# !*&%^$ shingles".

According to the Random House Unabridged (2nd ed.) it looks like you transposed the second set of the *& symbols. But, certainly that would be understandable if you had just used the eye medicine.

 

[Nemo2]

According to the Random House Unabridged (2nd ed.) it looks like you transposed the second set of the *& symbols. But, certainly that would be understandable if you had just used the eye medicine.

Naah, it's just that I have a limited vocabulary.

 

[Moemg]

Nemo , Hope 2017 is a better year !

 

[Nemo2]

Nemo , Hope 2017 is a better year !

Thank you......despite everything 2016 has still been a great year!

 

[ABQ2015]

In reviewing the 2017 changes to my health insurance plan, I noticed that shingles vaccinations will now be covered for those age 50 or older. For those interested, it might be worthwhile to check your policies. I got my vaccination in the last year as I was 60. Previously I had asked my doctor if I should get it earlier and pay for it myself but he did not consider it necessary as I was not at high risk but did not explain what that meant.

 

[street]

I hope 2017 is better for you. I have had shingles one time and had no pain what so ever. I finally went to the doctor because it didn't go away. It was on my neck to chest area. He gave me some pills and a cream to apply. He said the discolor from the rash would leave its markings and it would be noticeable. I guess I was lucky I didn't leave any scare or discolor where it was at. Since I had it, it might be a good idea to get the shot or shouldn't I bother since I have had them? My wife got hers last fall was afraid to get the shingles.

 

[Nemo2]

He said the discolor from the rash would leave its markings and it would be noticeable. I guess I was lucky I didn't leave any scare or discolor where it was at.

I now have a scar on my forehead, which I doubt will fade.......I think I might have said, earlier on the thread, that my dreams of a modelling career have been shattered.

 

[redduck]

Don't be such a Negative Nellie! Remember Omar from "The Wire"?

 

[Meadbh]

Or Harry Potter