How can Chiropractic Care help with Shingles?

Shingle is a form of viral infection that causes severe & painful rashes. Though shingles might appear on any part of your body, usually, it affects one side of the torso. It appears as a single stripe of blisters. The varicella-zoster virus that is responsible for causing chickenpox also causes this type of infection. If you had chickenpox earlier, the virus might lie dormant in nerve tissues near your brain or spinal cord. Years later, it might reactivate to cause shingles. This infection isn't life-threatening; however, can cause intense pain. Vaccines can reduce the risk of shingles. A shingle nerve pain relief chiropractor can help in relieving your shingles pain. In this article, we would share with you how chiropractic care can help to relieve your pain. 


Risk factors of Shingles

Before getting into the details of shingle pain-relieving tips, let's find out the factors responsible for putting you at the risk of developing shingles. As we mentioned earlier, the varicella-zoster virus causes shingles. Therefore, anyone who ever had chickenpox earlier can develop shingles. The other factors that might increase the risk of shingles are -

  • People older than age 50 - The advancing age is one of the important risk factors of shingles. People over the age of 50 are at a higher risk of developing shingles. 

  • Patients undergoing cancer treatments - Treatments such as radiation & chemotherapy can reduce your resistance to diseases. It might put you at the risk of developing shingles. 

  • Patients with certain diseases - Certain diseases such as HIV/AIDS or any form of cancer can weaken your immune system making you more vulnerable to shingles.

  • Patients under certain medications - Prolonged use of steroids & drugs for preventing the rejection of transplanted organs can increase the risk of developing shingles. 


Symptoms of Shingles

Now that we understand the various risk factors associated with shingles, let's find out the symptoms of this infection. Usually, shingles affect a small part of one side of your body. You may experience the symptoms such as pain, numbing, or tingling or burning sensation. Red rashes also might start a few days after the pain. The appearance of fluid-filled blisters that might break open & crust over. The affected area might be sensitive to touch & you may experience itching. Apart from these symptoms, some people might also experience fever, fatigue, sensitivity to light, and headache, etc.

Pain is usually the first symptom of shingles. The severity may vary between patients. Shingles, usually appear as a stripe of blisters & affect one side of your torso. Sometimes you may experience rashes around one eye or a side of your face or neck. If you experience these symptoms, seek shingles pain relief treatment from your chiropractor. They would carry out a thorough examination to diagnose shingles & provide the right therapy.


Complications of shingles

Shingles can lead to the following health complications-

  • Post Therapeutic Neuralgia - Some people might experience shingles pain even after the blisters disappeared. This type of health complication is called Post Therapeutic neuralgia, where the damages nerve fibers send wrong pain signals to your brain. 

  • Loss of vision - Shingles in or around your eye can lead to an eye infection that might lead to loss of vision. 

  • Neurological issues - Shingles affect nerves that can further cause facial paralysis, or issues concerning hearing or balance, or inflammation of the brain called encephalitis. 

  • Infection on the skin - If the blisters caused by shingles are not healed properly it can cause bacterial skin infection. 

Chiropractic care for Shingles

If you ever had chickenpox, the virus may lie dormant in your nerve tissues for years. Any form of misalignment in your spine might trigger this virus to reactivate, which may lead to the development of shingles. As a result, you must visit a spinal decompression chiropractor regularly for spinal adjustments. 

This form of treatment not only helps in restoring proper alignment of your spine but also the outbreak of shingles. It improves the communication between the central nervous system and the rest of your body. When your central nervous system performs in its optimal form, then it improves other systems of your body as well, including your immune system. With better immunity, you can recover from shingles pain faster.

If you develop painful rashes that affect one side of your body you should seek help from your chiropractors. They can not only help in diagnosis the presence of shingles but also can offer you the right shingles pain relief treatment to improve your health. 

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