What other complications do I need to worry about?

In addition to post-herpetic neuralgia, there are other complications of shingles that you must try to guard against to protect your future health.  The virus may affect internal organs including your lungs, your brain, and your gastrointestinal tract.  Shingles can lead to life-threatening bacterial infection, blindness, muscle weakness, and even death.

The virus causing your shingles may also find its way through affected nerve pathways into internal organs.  Facial shingles affecting the trigeminal nerve, for example, may lead to rare but potentially fatal encephalitis if it travels to the brain, may cause hearing loss if it impacts the auditory nerves, and may lead to facial paralysis.

What About the Risk of Permanent Eye Damage?

Some very serious complications of shingles involve the eyes.  Shingles on the face suggests that it is the trigeminal nerve which has harbored the varicella zoster virus.  The trigeminal nerve serves not only the mouth, cheeks, nose, and jaw, but also the eyes.  Any shingles on the face, therefore, means that the eyes are in danger of becoming infected, which may lead to blindness.

One fifth of shingles sufferers get shingles that involve the eye, and of these, according to a 2003 Mayo Clinic study, nearly nine percent suffer serious complications within the next five years, including glaucoma, swelling or scaring of the cornea or eyelid, and loss of vision.  It is critical that shingles anywhere on the face be treated immediately. 

What Should I Know About Side Effects?

The primary antiviral drugs currently available are Valtrex, Zovirax, and Famvir. Each of these is only known to be effective if taken within 72 hours of the first symptoms of shingles. Each of these medications also has side effects that can be serious for some people, including
hallucinations, renal failure, and coma. Carefully discuss the risk factors with your physician.