Who can have these conditions?
Shingles can occur in people that have had chickenpox. Chickenpox used to be a very common condition seen in children until the chickenpox vaccine was discovered in the United States of America in 1995. This implies that most adults are at a higher risk of having shingles.
For people that think they are at risk of developing shingles, a vaccine is available that can help fight against the virus responsible for shingles. Not every one that caught chicken pox at a young age will have shingles. Several risk factors of shingles are:
- being older than 50
- using steroids for a long period
- going through radiation therapy or chemotherapy [3]
- having a disease that fights your immune system [4]
- using drugs that weaken the immune system
Herpes virus is majorly transmitted through sexual activities and other forms of skin-to-skin contact. Having unprotected sex (without condoms or other barriers) puts you at risk of having herpes infection.
Herpes simplex virus can be transmitted even when the carrier is showing no symptoms at all. It is important for sexually active people to know if their partners have tested negative for sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
Protective barriers like condoms should be used correctly to help prevent the herpes simplex virus and other STIs from being transferred. The virus can also be transferred from one gender to another.