Shingles Vaccine

Are you thinking about getting the shingles vaccine? Maybe you've read about the shingles vaccine in the news, or friends have talked about it. If you're over age 50, the shingles vaccine may help you avoid getting shingles. And if you've had shingles, the shingles vaccine may help prevent a recurrence.

Shingles (herpes zoster) is a painful skin rash, often with blisters that's caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. In people who have had chickenpox, the virus is never fully cleared from the body. Instead, the virus remains dormant in the nerve tissues. When physical or emotional stresses to the body weaken the immune system, the virus reactivates and spreads along the nerve fibers to the particular area of skin supplied by the involved nerve.

The first sign of shingles is often burning or tingling pain, or sometimes numbness or itch, in one particular location on only one side of the body. After a few days, the rash develops.

What Does the Shingles Vaccine Do?

The shingles vaccine, Zostavax, contains a weakened chickenpox virus (varicella-zoster virus). The shingles vaccine helps stimulate your immune system to battle disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus, reducing the risk of getting shingles in people aged 50 and older. In scientific studies, the shingles vaccine reduces the risk of developing shingles by about 50%.

Findings show that the shingles vaccine also helps people who go on to develop shingles have shorter periods of nerve pain called postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), which is extremely painful and can last anywhere from 30 days to months or even years after the rash has resolved. The nerve pain associated with shingles can be so severe in some people that it disrupts their lives.

The shingles vaccine helps prevent shingles in the person receiving the immunization. But because shingles is a contagious viral infection, the shingles vaccine also works to stop the spread of the virus just like childhood immunizations for varicella or measles, mumps, and rubella.

If a person with shingles passes the virus to someone who has never had chickenpox, the newly infected person will develop chickenpox, not shingles.

Who Should Get the Shingles Vaccine?

Shingles most commonly occurs in people 50 years old or older, people who have medical conditions that keep the immune system from working properly, or people who receive immunosuppressive drugs.

The CDC recommends a single dose of the shingles vaccine for people aged 50 and older, even if they've already had a bout of shingles. Since the majority of older Americans had chickenpox as children, millions of people are vulnerable to shingles.

Who Should not Get the Shingles Vaccine?

• According to the CDC, don't get a shingles vaccine if you've have the following:
• A life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin, the antibiotic neomycin, or any other component of the shingles vaccine. Tell your doctor if you have any severe allergies.
• A weakened immune system because of:
• HIV/AIDS or another disease that affects the immune system
• Treatment with drugs that affect the immune system, such as steroids
• Cancer treatment such as radiation or chemotherapy
• A history of cancer affecting the bone marrow or lymphatic system, such as leukemia or lymphoma
• Active, untreated tuberculosis
• Pregnancy (or might be pregnant). Women should not become pregnant until at least three months after getting shingles vaccine.

How to Recover From Laser Treatment for Varicose Veins

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What Are the Side Effects of Eyelid Surgery?

By Sadie Bell

Plastic surgery is common these days, especially smaller procedures like an eye lift. However, having surgery done on your eyes can come with certain risks. The most common eye procedure is called a blepharoplasty, which involves removing excess skin from the upper and lower eyelids to create a brighter, more awake appearance. While most people who undergo this operation are pleased with the results, some may experience negative side effects.

1. Irritation

   • Following eyelid surgery, the first thing you may notice is irritation around the treatment area. Small milia, or whiteheads, can appear near the incision and your eyes are likely to itch, burn and feel dry. Your vision might be blurred for a few days as well, though if this persists you should notify your doctor.

   Sensation Changes

   • Any surgery runs the risk of damaging nerves. The eye area is very sensitive, so surgery can cause your sensations to change. You might feel numbness or tingling near your eyes or your eyes may feel cold. Your eyes also may itch severely. Usually, sensation changes go away once your incisions heal, but there is the risk of the changes being permanent, so be prepared for the possibility of sensation changes before you go under the knife.

   Ectropion

   • Another potential side effect of eyelid surgery is ectropion. This is a relatively rare side effect that causes the lower eyelid to droop downward. It often looks like the skin is being pulled down, though there is no external pressure. Unfortunately, this is a permanent side effect and would likely need additional surgery to repair.

   Bleeding

   • Excessive bleeding is a potential side effect for those that have undergone eyelid surgery. The incision could bleed outwardly at an accelerated pace, especially if you have a clotting disorder or anemia. However, another condition can also develop called retrobulbar hematoma, which involves the build up of blood behind the eye. Blurry vision or blindness could develop as a result, though this is very rare.

   Scarring

   • Unfortunately, some people who receive eyelid surgery end up with scarring. The scars typically show up at the incision site. For the most part, any visible scarring will fade with time, but if you develop an infection following eyelid surgery, there is an increased chance of a larger, more pronounced scar.

COFFEE OVERVIEW INFORMATION

Coffee is a drink made from coffee beans, which are the roasted fruit of the Coffee arabica bush.

People drink coffee to relieve mental and physical fatigue and to increase mental alertness. Coffee is also used to prevent Parkinson's disease, gallstones, type 2 diabetes, gastrointestinal cancer, lung cancer, and breast cancer. Other uses include treatment of headache, low blood pressure, obesity, and attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Rectally, coffee is used as an enema to treat cancer. Coffee enemas are used as a part of the "Gerson Therapy." In the Gerson Therapy, cancer patients are treated with caffeinated coffee in the form of enemas every four hours on a daily basis. During the treatment people are given a diet of liver, vegetables, and a variety of medicines, including potassium, pepsin, Lugol's solution, niacin, pancreatin, and thyroid extracts. The Gerson Therapy is considered an unacceptable medical practice in the U.S., but continues to be used at The Hospital of the Baja California in Tijuana, Mexico, one mile from the U.S.

How does it work?

Coffee contains caffeine. Caffeine works by stimulating the central nervous system (CNS), heart, and muscles.

VITAMIN E OVERVIEW INFORMATION

Vitamin E is a vitamin that dissolves in fat. It is found in many foods including vegetable oils, cereals, meat, poultry, eggs, fruits, vegetables, and wheat germ oil. It is also available as a supplement.

Vitamin E is used for treating vitamin E deficiency, which is rare, but can occur in people with certain genetic disorders and in very low-weight premature infants.

Some people use vitamin E for treating and preventing diseases of the heart and blood vessels including hardening of the arteries, heart attack, chest pain, leg pain due to blocked arteries, and high blood pressure.

Vitamin E is also used for treating diabetes and its complications. It is used for preventing cancer, particularly lung and oral cancer in smokers; colorectal cancerand polyps; and gastric, prostate, and pancreatic cancer.

Some people use vitamin E for diseases of the brain and nervous system including Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, Parkinson’s disease, night cramps,restless leg syndrome, and for epilepsy, along with other medications. Vitamin E is also used for Huntington’s chorea, and other disorders involving nerves and muscles.

Women use vitamin E for preventing complications in late pregnancy due to highblood pressure (pre-eclampsia), premenstrual syndrome (PMS), painful periods, menopausal syndrome, hot flashes associated with breast cancer, and breast cysts.

Sometimes vitamin E is used to lessen the harmful effects of medical treatments such as dialysis and radiation. It is also used to reduce unwanted side effects of drugs such as hair loss in people taking doxorubicin and lung damage in people taking amiodarone.

Vitamin E is sometimes used for improving physical endurance, increasing energy, reducing muscle damage after exercise, and improving muscle strength.

Vitamin E is also used for cataracts, asthma, respiratory infections, skin disorders, aging skin, sunburns, cystic fibrosis, infertility, impotence, chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), peptic ulcers, for certain inherited diseases and to prevent allergies.

Some people apply vitamin E to their skin to keep it from aging and to protect against the skin effects of chemicals used for cancer therapy (chemotherapy).

The American Heart Association recommends obtaining antioxidants, including vitamin E, by eating a well-balanced diet high in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains rather than from supplements until more is known about the risks and benefits of taking supplements.

How does it work?

Vitamin E is an important vitamin required for the proper function of many organs in the body. It is also an antioxidant. This means it helps to slow down processes that damage cells.

Drug Side Effects

Please note - many side effects of medications may not be reported. Always consult your doctor or healthcare specialist for medical advice. You may also report side effects to the FDA athttp://www.fda.gov/medwatch/ or 1-800-FDA-1088 (1-800-332-1088).

More about Drug Side Effects

A side effect is usually regarded as an undesirable secondary effect which occurs in addition to the desired therapeutic effect of a drug or medication. Side effects may vary for each individual depending on the person's disease state, age, weight, gender, ethnicity and general health.

Side effects can occur when commencing, decreasing/increasing dosages, or ending a drug or medication regimen. Side effects may also lead to non-compliance with prescribed treatment. When side effects of a drug or medication are severe, the dosage may be adjusted or a second medication may be prescribed. Lifestyle or dietary changes may also help to minimize side effects.