I have Chiari and now Shingles... are they related

[childscindy]

i am 22 years old, got shingles 2 months ago, the rash is much better but i still have major back pain, cold sweats, headaches, heart palpitations and a strange sensitivity to anything touching the skin over my heart. I also have chiari malformation. can you tell me what is creating my systems, and if there is anything that wiell help? I cannot sleep at night and am tired and fatigued all the time. I wake up feeling extremely sluggish. Help!

[Hopsbride]

I have Chiari and was decompressed ten weeks ago. I had a CSF leak a week post op and was readmitted to the ICU a few days later for a lumbar drain. In those few days I had a shingles flare up. I also had chemical meningitis during that time. I was told that it's a small possibility that the shingles caused the meningitis and wasn't detected. As I type this I'm having a flare up. In the year since I because extremely symptomatic with the Chiari I've had six such flare ups, and I definitely feel that it's related.

[selmaS]

  Well u may have been exposed to the virus but ur immune system suppressed it.But the virus remains in the system for yrs..and a trauma can disturb things like this.....

MRSA too yikes...how r u feeling?

What meds r u on?

  "selma"

[sandy629]

  i had the chiari surgery  and after surgery i got shingles on my rear end  i also got mrsa. i was told that any trauma to the body could activate the shingles.  i did not have chicken pox  when i was younger

[selmaS]

  Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.

Shingles is a virus and it is from the same virus as chicken pox...when u were younger and had chicken pox the virus remained in ur body.When our immune system inactivates the virus....later in life something can cause the virus to reactivate...and cause us pain, rashes....etc....

Many with Chiari do have autoimmune issues, so if the flare of the chiari triggered the shingles could be possible, that could be the only connection that I can think of.

U deff need to see a true chiari specialist to see how ur chiari is affecting ur overall health.With heart palps u should have ur heart checked out completely.

We have a list of Drs compiled of the names of the members drs- it is not meant as a referral, but as a means to help u get started on ur research of drs.

http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Neurological%20Disorders/DOCTORS-LIST-FOR-CHIARI-SYRINGOMYELIA/show/1062?cid=186

Sleep issues is a big part of chiari and I would also assume with shingles as well.

   "selma"