A 38-year-old member asked:
can someone get get shingles if not had chicken pox?
2 doctor answers
Dr. Alfredo Garcia answered
55 years experience Pediatrics
Shingles: Shingles or herpes zoster is caused by a reactivated chickenpox (varicella) virus that has gone dormant after the initial varicella infection.
So the answer to your question is no.
Answered on Sep 2, 2013
Dr. James Ferguson answered
45 years experience Pediatrics
No, but: You canot have shingles unless you had prior chickenpox.However, 90% of adults who do not recall having chickenpox test positive for antibodies (they had it).You can actually acquire the germ if your mother has chickenpox during pregnancy and the germ gets into your system. This causes some problems in pregnancy but may go unrecognised and have no visable effect on the baby.
Answered on Jul 18, 2018
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Related questions:
A 42-year-old member asked:
Dr. James Ferguson answered
45 years experience Pediatrics
Not really: Shingles is a pattern illness where the virus reactivates from its hibernation spot in the nerves. More than 90% of adults who think they never had Cp ... Read More
1
1 comment
A 23-year-old member asked:
Dr. Robert Kwok answered
32 years experience Pediatrics
Unlikely to happen: Herpes zoster (shingles) is the chicken pox virus, so a person with zoster can touch any normal person (not immunocompromised, not on prednisone, not ... Read More
1
1 thank
A female asked:
Dr. James Ferguson answered
45 years experience Pediatrics
Unlikely: The germ from a shingles patient is more restricted than with actual cpx. It is never in their saliva or from a cough, only through direct contact wit ... Read More
A 30-year-old male asked:
Dr. Robert Killian answered
27 years experience General Practice
Not contagious: As previously taught to you Shingles is not contagious. It is a deep (inside the nerves of the affected human) reactivation of their previous infecti ... Read More
2
2 thanks
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