| Abstrakt: |
Herpes zoster (shingles), a painful and disabling disease, affects an estimated 1 million individuals in the United States annually and results in significant morbidity, lost productivity, and diminished quality of life. Herpes zoster constitutes the reactivation of varicella-zoster virus (VZV), the same virus that causes chickenpox. After resolution of chickenpox, VZV remains dormant in dorsal root ganglia. Varicella-zoster–specific cell-mediated immunity wanes naturally with advancing age or earlier in the setting of an altered immune status, which can result in the reactivation of VZV as herpes zoster. |
