Age: 72.0
Sex: M
Vaccine: PNC13
Symptoms: Arthralgia, Burning sensation, Discharge, Dry skin, Herpes zoster
Clinical narrative: On October 2rd of 2020 I went to my local pharmacy to receive the flu vaccine.  While I was there I also received a Shingles vaccination that was for people 70 plus years old.  Both injections were administered to my left arm.    Shortly after the injection my muscles in my shoulder started to have pain which increased each day.    In a few days my left side of my body started to swell and I rubbed icy hot cream all up and down the left side of my ribs and stomach area.  The icy hot hot helped a little but at that point my joints started to hurt with massive cramps.  On November 5th when I was taking a hot shower as I usually do, my back on my left side had a burning sensation.  I reduced the temperature of the shower water but my back was still burning and started to have a stinging sensation and was very sensitive to touch.  If I even gently touched my back next to my spine I would be in agony.    I could not see my spine even with two mirrors so I did not know what it was other than the skin was very rough and fluid was weeping out of the area.  The mussel and joint pain was increasing.   On November 7th as I was ending my lukewarm shower I noticed a light pink rash on my skin from my ribs to the navel on the left side of my body.  It was very sensitive to the touch.    By November 10th I called the hospital to see if they knew what I had.  They said to come in as soon as possible that day so I could be evaluated.  I went to the hospital and the doctor took one look and called over other doctors to confirm what I had.  They all said I had shingles and it was in the contagious stage.  I asked if they could give me medication for it and they said all they could do for it was to give me some antibiotics to prevent additional infections.  They said not to cover it and not to put any creams on it as it would inflame the situation.  I asked how long it would be a problem and the doctors said it looked like a severe case and it would last at least 15 days more.    I am taking 600mg of Ibuprofen every 6 hours to manage the pain and Valacyclovir HCL three times a day as an antibiotic to prevent further infections.   The doctor wondered how I got infected in the first place and suggested that I may have caught it from the Shingles vaccine.  From that medical appointment I believe it was from the injection that I received on October 2nd 2020.  I feel the injection contained active shingles instead of a weakened version.    I live by myself high in the mountains and raise my own food in a greenhouse.  I have spring water on site and do not around many people. I travel twice a month for groceries.   I feel pharmacy is to blame for my shingles infection.  I have never had a skin infection before in my whole life.   My sleeping is interrupted each night due to the pain of the skin rash.  I have to get up and sit in a recliner and usually fall asleep back asleep sitting up as that position puts less pressure on the infection.  During the day I fall asleep reading my newspaper due to lack of sleep.  My life revolves around the shingles infection.    I want compensation from pharmacy who injected me with the shingles virus.    Nov 20, 2020 - I believe the shingles vaccine I received was the actual shingles virus full strength not a weakened strain.    The complication I am having is affecting my entire left side of my body with kidney infection (increased urination), and burning of an area 4 inches wide running from my spine to my navel.  The area is very sensitive to touch.  I have to sleep on my right side to sleep at all.   I sleep 2 hours until the oxycodone wears off and I have to go and urinate every 2 hours with a full bladder.  I then have to take more oxycodone to sleep for another 2 hours and urinate.    I asked the pharmacy associate if I could get shingles from the vaccine and they told me I could not get it from the injection.    I have full blown shingles and I have had symptoms for 50 days at this point.  I may have these systems for several years, burning sensation, tenderness, sleep disruption, kidney problems.