Herpes Zoster
Authors: Jennifer F. Wilson
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2011)

In the Clinic1 March 2011Herpes ZosterDeborah Cotton, MD, MPH, Darren Taichman, MD, Sankey Williams, MD, and Jennifer F. WilsonDeborah Cotton, MD, MPHSearch for more papers by this author, Darren Taichman, MDSearch for more papers by this author, Sankey Williams, MDSearch for more papers by this author, and Jennifer F. WilsonSearch for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/0003-4819-154-5-201103010-01003 SectionsSupplemental MaterialAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail Herpes zoster, a painful skin rash that is commonly known as shingles, occurs in approximately 1 million people in the United States annually (1). Herpes zoster can develop in anyone who has had varicella (chickenpox). About 95% of the adult U.S. population has had varicella and thus can have herpes zoster. Approximately one third of persons will have an episode of herpes zoster, and the frequency increases with increasing age. Herpes zoster occurs when the varicella zoster virus, which causes both varicella and herpes zoster, is reactivated from its latent state in the dorsal root or cranial nerve ganglia and ...References1. Schmader KE, Dworkin RH. Natural history and treatment of herpes zoster. J Pain. 2008;9:S3-9. [PMID: 18166460] Google Scholar2. Kilgore PE, Kruszon-Moran D, Seward JF, Jumaan A, Van Loon FP, Forghani B, et al. Varicella in Americans from NHANES III: implications for control through routine immunization. J Med Virol. 2003;70 Suppl 1:S111-8. [PMID: 12627498] Google Scholar3. Rimland D, Moanna A. Increasing incidence of herpes zoster among Veterans. Clin Infect Dis. 2010;50:1000-5. [PMID: 20178416] Google Scholar4. LaRussa P, Steinberg SP, Shapiro E, Vazquez M, Gershon AA. Viral strain identification in varicella vaccinees with disseminated rashes. 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