Age: 77.0
Sex: F
Vaccine: COVID19
Symptoms: Herpes zoster reactivation
Clinical narrative: Shingles started coming back; under her left breast, it's red and irritated; shingles pain; itching and burning; This is a spontaneous report from a contactable consumer (patient). A 77-year-old female patient received BNT162B2 (PFIZER-BIONTECH COVID-19 VACCINE; Lot Number: EN6199), via an unspecified route of administration in left arm, on 08Mar2021 at 04:30 PM (16:30), as first dose, single, for COVID-19 immunization. The patient's medical history included ongoing blood pressure high (blood pressure); hernia from 2020 and ongoing; shingles last Oct2020 (also reported as back in October, November, and December; started under her left breast and spread to the right side; always starts out itching, then she gets the pain, which is burning and aching, then the blisters come out) and was given a steroid shot on 29Dec2020; thyroid disorder; neuropathy pain; and pain. The patient needs knee surgery but has been putting it off because of the shingles. The patient's concomitant medications included levothyroxine for thyroid, clonidine for blood pressure, simvastatin, amlodipine for blood pressure, metoprolol for blood pressure, gabapentin for neuropathy pain, and hydrocodone for pain; all were ongoing. The patient had some questions about the COVID-19 vaccine. The patient asked if it will be okay to get a steroid shot in between the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine doses. The patient had shingles last Oct2020 and was given a steroid shot on 29Dec2020 (back in October, November, and December she had shingles and was getting steroids shots for that). In Jan2021, the patient called her doctor and asked if she could still get the vaccine, and the doctor told her yes. The doctor included the patient in the list for the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine; said it was okay. The patient then received the first dose of Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 Vaccine last 08Mar2021 and then last Friday (12Mar2021), her shingles started coming back (now, her shingles is coming back). The blisters haven't come out yet. For the patient, shingles always starts out itching, then she gets the pain, which is burning and aching, then the blisters come out. Shingles is under her left breast, it's red and irritated. She has been using the cream she had left over from the last time she had shingles, and the doctor told her to take gabapentin she has that she takes as needed for nerve pain, but patient states that it doesn't work on the shingles pain. The blisters will probably come out next week. She was up all night, putting stuff on it, because it was itching and burning. Last time it started under her left breast and spread to the right side. And now it's working its way over to the right side again. She has been using that cream that she had left over, but the best thing that works (according to her doctor) is yellow Listerine. The doctor said to dab it on the shingles spots, and it will numb it and calm down the itching and burning. States that she was up all night just dabbing it. The adverse event did not require a visit to the emergency room or physician office. The patient did speak with her doctor on the phone. Her doctor wanted her to go to the office, but the patient refused since she knew she couldn't get a steroid shot. The patient called the doctor's office to find out when her last steroid shot was, and it was on 29Dec2020. The patient was scheduled to get her second dose of the vaccine on 31Mar2021. The patient can't get a steroid shot for the shingles now because she just had the vaccine, and she doesn't think she can get it in between doses of the vaccine. The patient called the doctor to ask if it was okay for her to get the second dose, and the doctor said that she didn't know, so she didn't have anything to tell her. The patient was seeking guidance on this possible side effect and asked when she can get the second dose of the vaccine. The patient had not recovered from the event.