During my outpatient clinic last week, a middle-aged woman in her late 50s came in for a consultation due to an outbreak of herpes zoster (shingles). Having read a lot of popular science articles, she recognized that her rash was shingles because she observed the typical erythema, papules, and vesicles, accompanied by significant pain.

She complained to me that she had originally scheduled an appointment to receive the recombinant zoster vaccine tomorrow, but now she could no longer get it because she had developed the disease. Shingles is so painful that she regretted not going to the community health center to get vaccinated sooner. She asked me: "Now that I have shingles, do I still need to get the vaccine?"

I explained that the herpes zoster vaccine is intended to prevent shingles and does not have a therapeutic effect; therefore, you will unfortunately have to cancel tomorrow's appointment for the recombinant zoster vaccine. Although you saved two to three thousand yuan in vaccination costs, the pain from this bout of shingles is quite agonizing. You must pursue active treatment to avoid lingering postherpetic neuralgia (PHN).

Although the probability of experiencing herpes zoster twice is very low, it is still encountered clinically. If your financial situation allows, you can still choose to get vaccinated in 3 to 5 years. This is perfectly fine and can help prevent the risk of a future recurrence of shingles.

I instructed her to return for a follow-up visit in about a week so I can monitor the progression of the herpes and the level of pain to adjust her medication. The cost of early-stage treatment for herpes zoster is relatively low and is covered by medical insurance. The most critical concern is that if postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) develops later on, the costs could become quite high, and more importantly, it involves significant suffering.

Are you planning to have your parents vaccinated against herpes zoster?