The last week of April is World Immunization Week. For many families, vaccination is the most effective, economical and convenient means of protecting children's health. But at the same time, many families ignore the need for vaccinations for the elderly. Recently, at the community health service center of Lianhua Street in Kunming's Wuhua District, 64-year-old Zhang Jinhua was brought by his daughter to undergo recombinant herpes zoster vaccination.
Experts recommend that middle-aged and elderly people receive the recombinant herpes zoster vaccine as soon as possible
"I've had this disease since 1999, and herpes grows on my waist, which hurts so much that it hurts even if I don't touch it, and sometimes it hurts so much that I can't sleep well." Zhang Jinhua introduced that she is a native of Kunming, because she suffers from shingles, she has followed her daughter to the major hospitals in Kunming for more than ten years, taking various medicines, but always treating the symptoms but not the root cause, often the pain is relieved for a period of time and then it will recur. Therefore, after learning that she had the shingles vaccine, she quickly made an appointment to get it, and her family was very supportive.
According to reports, herpes zoster folklore is commonly known as "waist-twisting dragon" or "raw snake", is a common dermatological disease, caused by long-term lurking in the spinal cord root ganglia or cranial ganglia varicella virus, reactivated caused by infectious skin diseases. About 99.5% of adults aged 50 years and older have the virus latent in their bodies. In addition to skin lesions, shingles can also cause burning, electric shock, knife-like pain, and pain in the acute phase may be more than labor pain, spinal injury, chronic cancer pain, etc. Postherpetic neuralgia is the most common complication of shingles. About 9% to 34% of patients with shingles develop postherpetic neuralgia, and 30% to 50% of patients with postherpetic neuralgia have pain that lasts for more than 1 year, and some even as long as 10 years or more.
"The herpes zoster virus can be latent in the human body all the time. When the body's resistance declines, the virus will 'take advantage of the void', causing herpes zoster. Yan Min, head of the preventive health care section of the Lianhua Street Community Health Service Center in Wuhua District, introduced that people over 50 years old are prone to shingles, and the older they are, the more susceptible they are to disease, and the more serious the disease.
Experts recommend that middle-aged and elderly people receive the recombinant herpes zoster vaccine as soon as possible
She said that the elderly often suffer from one or more underlying diseases, such as diabetes, cardiovascular diseases and so on. The risk of postherpetic neuralgia in these chronically ill patients is significantly increased. "And shingles is not 'a stroke, lifelong immunity', on the contrary, people who have had shingles, due to low immunity at the time of illness, or as age increases, the virus will be activated again to cause the onset of the disease." At the same time, the presence of underlying diseases will lead to more severe shingles and complications, so prevention is particularly important. ”
Experts remind that the elderly with low resistance should pay attention to rest, eat reasonably, strengthen exercise, and enhance resistance. Once you are found to have shingles, seek medical attention as soon as possible.
Yan Min said that at present, the treatment of shingles is mainly antiviral and symptomatic treatment, and there is no specific drug. Vaccination is the most effective and feasible means of prevention. "Shingles vaccine is of great significance to maintaining the health function of middle-aged and elderly people and improving the health level of middle-aged and elderly people, and I hope that more people can recognize the harm of this disease as soon as possible, and recommend that people over 50 years old actively be vaccinated and prevented."
Yunnan network reporter Peng Xi Zhao Zhengyin photo report