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A Historical Perspective

Raul G. Nogueira, MD; Bryan Traynor, MD, MRCPI

Arch Neurol. 2004;61:1974-1977.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

INTRODUCTION

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) causes 2 distinctive syndromes: varicella (chickenpox), the primary infection, which is usually a benign epidemical illness from childhood that manifests as a generalized pruritic rash, and herpes zoster (shingles), which results from the reactivation of latent VZV within the sensory ganglia and typically manifests as a painful dermatomal eruption (Figure 1).

Figure appears in full text version. Figure 1. A color lithograph entitled "Herpes Zoster faciei et capitillii" published in Atlas der Hautkrankheiten (Hebra’s Atlas of Skin Diseases) in 1866 by von Carl Heitzmann. (Source: Diepgen TL, Yihune G, et al. Dermatology Online Atlas. http://www.dermis.net/doia/.)

The VZV itself is estimated to have emerged some 70 million years ago.¹ The disease known as herpes zoster has been recognized since ancient times and was initially named by Hippocrates (herpes= to creep). Zoster is similarly derived from Greek (girdle), whereas shingles comes from Latin . . . [Full Text of this Article]

ETIOLOGY: THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN VARICELLA AND ZOSTER

PATHOGENESIS: THE SENSORY GANGLIA AND VIRAL LATENCY

CYTOPATHOLOGICAL DIAGNOSIS

POSTHERPETIC NEURALGIA

TREATMENT

PROPHYLAXIS

AUTHOR INFORMATION

Author Affiliations: Department of Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston.