Newswise — The painkiller oxycodone is effective at treating the acute pain of shingles, an illness that often causes severe pain which can become long-lasting and sometimes even permanent.
The study, published in the April issue of the journal Pain, is one of the first to carefully evaluate different methods to relieve pain during a course of shingles, which many patients say causes the worst pain they have ever experienced. Effective pain treatment is crucial. Not only can the pain of shingles disrupt people’s quality of life, but it is also possible that the less effectively the pain is treated, the more likely it will become a long-term problem that can change a person’s life forever.
Shingles is caused by reactivation of the varicella zoster virus, the same bug that causes chicken pox, and only people who have had chicken pox are vulnerable to shingles. About 20 to 30 percent of people will get shingles at some point in their lives; the odds climb to 50 percent for people who live to the age of 85.
For most patients, the first symptom of the infection is pain, quickly followed by a rash where the pain first appeared. The rash appears most often on one side of the chest or face, oftentimes causing dozens of small pimple-sized lesions. Some patients also get flu-like symptoms like a headache and lethargy. The illness usually lasts about three or four weeks.
Pain is the hallmark and typically the most troubling symptom. Nearly all patients hurt to some degree, some severely. It’s is a mix of pain that results from damage to nerves – known as neuropathic pain – as well as inflammatory pain in the skin and surrounding tissues.
http://www.newswise.com/articles/view/550448/Thanks Lynn49 , My father has had Shingles for about 2 years now on his left arm. He is n so much pain all the time . He is takeing Gamapentin and that helps a little bit . I will bring this up on his next visit with his Dr.Glad I could be of some help I know shingles is very painful!