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Reply
| | | From: Rene (Original Message) | Sent: 8/30/2005 12:08 AM |
Shingles Fact Sheet: What is Shingles?
Herpes zoster, commonly known as Shingles, is an illness characterized by an onset of blistering skin eruptions on the trunk, accompanied or followed by a long period of excruciating pain in the affected areas, known as Post-Herpatic Neuralgia. What Causes Shingles: The exact etiology is still unknown, however, it is believed to be caused by the chickenpox virus, usually contacted in childhood, and reactivated later in life.
This infection is due to a temporary decrease in the body's resistance, allowing the virus to start multiplying & to move along nerve fibres towards the skin. The fact that the disease occurs more often in older people is because the immune response is believed to be weaker in older people. Trauma or stress may also contribute to an attack of shingles.
Immune depressed individuals include those with cancer e.g. leukemia, lymphoma; those undergoing chemotherapy or radiation therapy for cancer; patients who have organ transplants and are taking drugs to ward off transplant rejection; patients with diseases that effect the immune system i.e. AIDS.
Symptoms:
The initial sign is often a tingling, followed by a burning pain and extreme sensitivity, usually along the distribution of a single nerve on one side of the body only, most commonly on the trunk. It can also appear on the face.
1-3 days later, a red rash occurs, which soon turns into blisters resembling chicken pox.
The blisters generally last 2-3 weeks leaving scars on the affected area, usually the trunk or disfiguring the face.
Pain may also be accompanied by other complications including ocular damage or encephalitis.
Zoster-Associated Pain:
Pain is the major problem in herpes zoster. Pre-eruptive pain, itching, or burning precedes the eruption by 4-5 days.
The pain may simulate pleurisy, myocardial infarction, abdominal disease, or migraine headache and presents a difficult diagnostic problem until the characteristic eruption provides the answer.
The skin frequently extremely tender to touch and the patient may go to extraordinary lengths in an effort to protect the diseased area from innocuous mechanical stimuli or example, contact of a shirt with the skin.
Descriptions of the pain by patients typically include the words "burning shooting, lancing, excruciating, severe, intractable, and exhausting."
The mechanism of the pain may be due to the inflammation and scarring of the sensory nerve root.
Pain can persist in a dermatone for months or years after the lesions have disappeared.
There is an increasing incidence and duration of pain with age. The majority of patients under 30 years of age experience no pain. By the age of 40, the risk of prolonged pain lasting longer than one month increases to 33%. By the age of 70, the risk increases to 74%.
Conventional Shingles Treatment:
Conventional medical treatment does not have much to offer except narcotic pain killers, high doses of tranquilizers at night and steroids.
Some physicians may prescribed Zostrix, a pepper cream that aims to exhaust the body's pain transmission mechanism for a few hours.
If diagnosed within 72 hours of the onset, the acyclovir family of antiviral drugs may decrease the severity and duration of the illness to a degree. Unfortunately most patients are diagnosed beyond this time frame.
From http://www.drhui.com/
B Vitamin complex and zinc(up to 50 mg/day) improves the immune system. I copied this info: Toronto physician, Dr. Fred Hui, M.D., A physician who has practiced a unique blend of Eastern & Western medicine for over 16 years, has developed an approach which includes: Medication if necessary
German neurotherapy, a technique using local anaesthetic nerve blocks
Spinal manipulation
Western anatomical knowledge of the nerve root
A selection of acupuncture points
Energy techniques
Cupping techniques used by the Chinese & many Eastern European cultures--also known as "Bunkus" in the Jewish culture
Chinese herbs
Herbs from other cultures
Meditations
- I first met Dr. Hui several years ago during an alternative health seminar we both attended. My son went to him for treatment of a large cyst, effectively ! Rene M |
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Reply
| | | From: Rene | Sent: 7/2/2006 12:05 AM |
Dear Reader, "Please, need information on Shingles. What can we do for the pain of shingles? Please help."
The tone of that request - from an HSI member named Theresa - reveals just how painful and debilitating a case of the shingles can be. Fortunately there are natural therapies Theresa can use to help reduce shingles pain and shorten the healing period. --------------------------------------------
Priming the pump
-------------------------------------------- On the topic of shingles, HSI Panelist Allan Spreen, M.D., can relate. He says, "I had it for a week and about died."
In the e-Alert "Rain on My Parade" (5/12/04), Dr. Spreen mentioned that B-12 is an effective treatment for shingles. When I asked him to elaborate he explained: "The key is that the virus inhabits the nerve root, activating during some onset of stress. B-12 goes to the nerve sheath, directly, as a nutrient, and is the best attack I know."
But Dr. Spreen's B-12 regimen is a little more involved than just popping a few sub-lingual B-12 tabs. To begin with, he suggests that as soon as a case of shingles is diagnosed, the patient should take 1 mg (1000 mcg, or 1cc) of B-12 by intramuscular injection per day for a week, then once each week until symptoms are completely gone.
Intramuscular injection may not seem too appealing, but Dr. Spreen notes that it's not as bad as it sounds: "It's easy to teach a person to inject themselves, especially since it's cheap and they have quite an incentive if they have shingles. At first, the injections are pretty important (as I've seen nothing else work as well or as fast). They cause crusting to occur much faster.
"It is possible to use sub-lingual B-12, which allows for the use of methyl-B-12 form, which is the most powerful, and nearly impossible to get by the intramuscular route, but I like starting with a few shots to 'prime the pump'. 1-2 mg of the sub-lingual form daily should work pretty well after that."
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Flower power
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In addition to vitamin B-12, Dr. Spreen offers these suggestions: "To shorten the duration of shingles, I'd add alpha-lipoic acid, several hundred milligrams per day, along with vitamin C (of course), at least 1000 milligrams three times/day. Anything to enhance the immune system will shorten the misery."
The misery may also be shortened by a topical application of geranium oil.
A case of shingles may last less than 10 days, but it's the post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) that can hang on and cause considerable pain for long periods. In a study published in The American Journal of Medicine, researchers divided 30 adults suffering PHN into four groups. One group received topical treatments of geranium oil, while two groups received a mix of geranium oil and mineral oil (at ratios of 1 to 1 and 1 to 10), and a fourth group received only mineral oil.
All of the subjects who received any amount of geranium oil reported pain reduction, and those who received treatments containing 100 percent geranium oil experienced the greatest pain relief. The placebo group reported little or no relief. Some subjects experienced a slight irritation from the geranium oil, but these irritations subsided within an hour or so.
Dr. Spreen tells me that he's never heard of using geranium oil to address shingles, but says, "I like the idea of anything topical and non-toxic. If there's anything to it, washing the area first with a non-chemical soap, then applying some DMSO before the geranium oil would cause it to absorb deeper into the area (though there's a garlicky taste to put up with for awhile)."
Conventional treatment for shingles is limited to anti-viral medications that sometimes take days to work, and often don't work at all. And while Theresa and others may find pain relief and faster healing through Dr. Spreen's vitamin regimen or by using geranium oil, they should talk to their doctor or naturopathic healthcare professional before beginning any natural or over-the-counter treatments.
To Your Good Health, Jenny Thompson, June 26, 2006, www.hsibaltimore.com Sources:
"Temporary Relief of Postherpetic Neuralgia Pain with Topical Geranium Oil" The American Journal of Medicine" Vol. 115, No. 7, November 2003, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
"Geranium Oil Effective for Post-Shingles Pain" Darin Ingels, N.D., Healthnotes Newswire, 12/18/03, pccnaturalmarkets.com
"Testosterone Treatment Linked with Prostate Cancer" Will Boggs, M.D., Reuters Health, 8/12/05, reutershealth.com
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Reply
| | | From: Rene | Sent: 2/8/2007 5:25 PM |
Natural Treatment for Shingles
February 8, 2007:- Approximately one million -- mostly older -- Americans get shingles (herpes zoster) each year as the varicella-zoster virus reactivates from a childhood chickenpox (variella) infection. The virus typically travels along one nerve to one part of the body to the skin's surface where it eventually erupts into another rash with blisters. Before that happens, though, other symptoms may appear, including tingling, itching and sometimes pain or a burning sensation that can be so intense it has been confused with that of kidney stones, appendicitis or even a heart attack, depending on the location of the affected nerve. Once the rash does appear, typically on one side of the torso or face, it brings fresh misery with more pain and blisters. Patients are warned not to scratch because that might increase the potential for a secondary bacterial infection. In most people, shingles resolves itself by five or six very uncomfortable weeks... although, for a few patients, a painful and debilitating complication called postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) can linger for many more months and even years. In fact, the recent development of a vaccine for shingles (see Daily Health News, October 5, 2006) was partly to shield people from the possibility of PHN. While the vaccination is now a reality and is available to people ages 60 and over, I wondered about natural treatments that might both ease the discomfort of shingles and possibly reduce the amount of time it normally takes to run its course, as well as develop PHN. To find out, I called naturopathic physician Chris Meletis, ND, executive director of education for the Institute for Healthy Aging. Dr. Meletis often treats patients with shingles. NATURAL Treatment FOR SHINGLES Dr. Meletis tells me that his first recommendation for shingles patients is to take vitamin B-12. The reason, most importantly, is that B-12 has been shown to help prevent PHN. He says that it also helps bolster energy levels and eases the discomfort of the outbreak. Dr. Meletis often prescribes 1 mg of B-12 in the form of methylcobalamin twice a day, preferably under the tongue (sublingually). Continue this for the duration of the outbreak and for two to three months after the resolution of the rash and other symptoms. Another useful vitamin for combating shingles is vitamin C. A potent antioxidant, vitamin C bolsters the immune system and helps patients cope with the stress of the disease. Some people find that vitamin C helps dry blisters as well and reduces pain to some degree and it may also hinder development of PHN. The dosage for many of Dr. Meletis' patients is 1,000 mg two to three times a day with meals. Vitamin C can cause diarrhea, in which case patients are directed to ease up slightly on dosage until they find the maximum level that is tolerated. If nerve pain does remain after the lesions have resolved, lipoic acid at a dose of 300 mg two to three times a day can be helpful. One amino acid plays a particularly interesting role in shingles. L-lysine has been shown to be helpful in combating viruses, including another type of herpes virus called herpes simplex-1 that typically causes so-called fever blisters on the lips and herpes-simplex 2, which typically causes outbreaks of lesions on the genitalia. Use of L-lysine, however, must be prescribed and monitored carefully by a trained professional. L-lysine is contraindicated in pregnant women and those with elevated cholesterol or triglyceride levels. TOPICAL RELIEF Of course it is important to have topical balms and creams to soothe the itching and pain of the rash. There are several available that Dr. Meletis has found to be helpful. Lysine cream is one (but do not put on open sores) and lemon balm is another. After the sores heal, a variety of capsaicin-containing creams on the market may provide pain relief. Capsaicin, the substance that adds heat to hot peppers, is said to inhibit nerve cells from sending pain messages to the brain. Capsaicin creams come in a variety of strengths. Whichever one you select, start small by using just a dab and apply four times a day. It will sting when you first put it on, but don't let that fool you. Stick with it since it will help. After applying, wash hands with soap and water to avoid irritation on other parts of your skin. Finally, Dr. Meletis reminds all shingles patients that your body needs time to restore itself. You may not feel inclined to do much else as you battle shingles, so use the time to take it easy and get lots of rest. Be well, Carole Jackson, Bottom Line's Daily Health News; www bottomlinesecrets.com Sources: Natural Rx for Shingles; Chris Meletis, ND, executive director of Education for the Institute for Healthy Aging in Reno, Nevada. |
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