Shingles, Fever Blisters, Herpes
Herpes, or shingles, are virus-induced infections and are of two kinds. First, there is the small, reddened and blistery type of skin sore, referred to as fever blisters or cold sores, usually found in the area of the lips. The blistering ulceration may become quite uncomfortable and painful but rarely takes more than a week to heal. The second, more difficult form is the shingle form of Herpes, where the nerve itself is thought to be infected by a virus.
Shingles begins as a burning, itching pain followed by a skin eruption of small blisters on an already reddened and swollen skin. There are occasionally several waves of skin eruption, but the pain and itching are a severe and constant feature in this difficulty. Often it occurs on the chest wall where the irritation follows the course of the nerve between the ribs, where such an eruption practically diagnoses the disease as shingles.
In the treatment of shingles, the use of narcotics is sometimes required for the relief of pain, which often reaches excruciating proportions. Other treatment includes analgesics, antibiotics, and the application of smooth, soothing skin lotions. Usually shingles has its own time limit and causes no severe after effects, although an area of hypersensitivity may exist for long periods after the eruption has subsided. Most often one attack of shingles vaccinates a person against any shingle attacks in the future.
Lupus Erythematosus
Lupus is a skin difficulty which is part of a bodily disease which can seriously affect internal organs and possibly bring about death. The skin eruption consists of irregularly rounded bright red skin sores about the cheeks which often join over the bridge of the nose to form the widely known “butterfly formation.”
The fundamental cause of lupus erythematosus is not known, but certain related factors seem apparent. For example, it is known that sunlight in excessive amounts frequently brings about the more recognizable symptoms of this disease. It is not only skin involvement, but the probability of serious systemic disease that demands treatment by an experienced physician.
Eyelid Nodules, Xanthelasma
In senior years it is common to see yellowish, and painless small nodules which form just under the skin surface about the eyes and eyelids. The nodules are hard, fatty developments and are associated with cholesterol levels within the blood stream. They are not serious themselves, but occurring in later years of life, as a sign of high fat content in the blood, they frequently accompany, and sometimes herald arterial and heart diseases. Their appearance should be regarded as a warning that all may not be well in the circulatory system and that it is time for a thorough examination by the physician.