BACKGROUND Immunosuppression and age-related deficiencies in cell-mediated immunity are important factors for the reactivation of latent varicella-zoster virus (VZV). CD4+CD25+Foxp3+ regulatory T (Treg) cells and T helper 17 (Th17) cells are closely associated with various viral infections. OBJECTIVE We analyzed Treg cells and Th17 cells in patients with herpes zoster and investigated their r...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW Varicella zoster virus (VZV) reactivation results in zoster, which may be complicated by postherpetic neuralgia, myelitis, meningoencephalitis, and VZV vasculopathy. This review highlights the clinical features, laboratory abnormalities, imaging changes, and optimal treatment of each of those conditions. Because all of these neurological disorders produced by VZV reactivation ...

INTRODUCTION Postherpetic neuralgia is a common sequela of herpes zoster (shingles), in which chronic pain may last for weeks to years. Currently, available treatments include systemic opioid analgesics, tricyclic antidepressants, corticosteroids, and anticonvulsants, as well as topical capsaicin and lidocaine. These treatments are commonly unsatisfactory, with fewer than half of treated patien...

This survey summarises the observations of physicians who prospectively recorded clinically relevant data on their patients with an episode of herpes zoster. These included demography of patients, signs and symptoms during the prodromal phase, relevant history, description of disease at the first visit, therapeutic measures and description of disease, and occurrence of postherpetic neuralgia (p...