This retrospective study was designed to assess the effects of acyclovir treatment of acute herpes zoster on subsequent postherpetic neuralgia, and to examine the effects of amitriptyline in the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia. Eighty seven patients with postherpetic neuralgia of three or more months' duration were studied: 24 of them had had their herpes zoster treated with oral acyclovir....

Excellent outcomes were achieved with spinal cord stimulation (SCS) for 7 to 10 days on 2 patients who developed postherpetic neuralgia. Both patients were within 2 to 3 months of the onset of the condition, and nerve blocks provided only temporary pain relief and drug therapies had poor efficacy. The authors believe that limited-duration SCS for subacute postherpetic neuralgia is a useful trea...

Postherpetic neuralgia is a well-studied and somewhat common sequala of herpes zoster leading to intense pain episodes. Pain-induced vasovagal episodes can rarely lead asystole, which fatal potential complication. It crucial have high clinical suspicion asystole when patient presents with severe herpetic syncope. This unique cause 67-year-old Caucasian female who presented syncope caused by pos...

Herpes zoster, a commonly seen condition in daily medical practice, is reported to occur in 10–20% of the population at some time during the lifespan. Chronic, intractable postherpetic neuralgia, a sequela of herpes zoster, presents a clinical challenge. In recent years, effective antiviral agents that can be used in the outpatient setting have been developed for the treatment of herpes zoster ...

BACKGROUND While intractable itching may be rarely associated with postherpetic neuralgia, it can have catastrophic complications if present. METHOD We highlight a severe case of postherpetic itching in a 10-year-old male with Fanconi's and aplastic anemia, refractory to conventional treatments and requiring intravenous sedation. RESULTS Our use of 3 sequential stellate ganglion blocks with...

BACKGROUND In 2013, a herpes zoster vaccination programme was introduced in England for adults aged 70 years with a phased catch-up programme for those aged 71-79 years. We aimed to evaluate the effect of the first 3 years of the vaccination programme on incidence of herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia in this population. METHODS In this population-based study, we extracted data from the...

Glycine is an inhibitory neurotransmitter in the spinal dorsal horn and its extracellular concentration is regulated by glial glycine transporter (GlyT) 1 and neuronal GlyT2. This study was conducted to elucidate the effects of intrathecal injections of GlyT1 and GlyT2 inhibitors on two distinct types of mechanical allodynia, dynamic and static allodynia, in mice with herpetic or postherpetic p...

Herpes zoster, also known as shingles, is a distinctive clinical condition caused by the reactivation of latent varicella zoster (chickenpox) virus following an initial infection. Approximately 1 million cases of herpes zoster occur annually in the US, and one in every three people develops herpes zoster during their lifetime. Postherpetic neuralgia is a neuropathic pain syndrome characterized ...

BACKGROUND Postherpetic neuralgia is spontaneous pain and allodynia that persist long after the disappearance of the cutaneous lesions caused by herpes zoster. Inoculation of mice with herpes simplex virus-1 causes herpes zoster-like skin lesions and herpetic and postherpetic pain. Although NMDA receptors have been suggested to be involved in postherpetic pain as in other types of neuropathic p...