Shingles

Shingles

Shingles or herpes zoster is a contagious viral infection that is related to chicken pox. Generally it affects people under stress or with poor immunity. Often those infected with shingles are already performing below their best and the pain from shingles is a further blow. It can take some time to recover from the condition.

The virus that causes shingles affects a nerve either near the eyes or along the middle of the abdomen, causing small blisters to form. These blisters are very painful and may burst and take some time to heal. However, for those that are already unwell when they develop shingles, the pain may last for many months after the skin has healed, while the nerve recovers. The pain, described as sharp or burning, is very distressing and may start before the blisters are noticed.

As soon as you believe that someone may have shingles they must see their doctor immediately. Prompt anti viral treatment will ease the nerve damage and help to prevent the pain lasting for as long. Effective shingles treatments are available from your doctor and must be taken for the full course of treatment.

Once shingles has been diagnosed it is important to start taking pain relieving medicine at once. Up to half of the people over 50 who develop shingles still complain of the pain a year after the visible signs of the shingles infection have gone.

As long term pain relieving medicines are required, advice from your community pharmacist can help you control the pain and prevent pain relievers causing further damage. Some specific post-viral pain relieving creams are available from your pharmacy and these may help to relieve most of the pain, allowing you to ‘top up’ with oral medicines as needed.

Your local pharmacist can support and advise to manage and minimise the effects of shingles, and will refer you to further help if products you have tried have not worked to ease your recovery from this painful and debilitating condition.

Swallowing difficulties (dysphagia)

Causes of swallowing difficulties

Swallowing difficulties can happen at any age. There are a wide range of causes for them, including:

some medicines, such as antipsychotics
heartburn and acid reflux
cancer, such as mouth or throat cancers
nervous system or brain disorders
muscle disorders
blockages or structural issues with your mouth, throat or oesophagus.

Symptoms of swallowing difficulties

Symptoms of swallowing difficulties may include:

coughing or choking when eating or drinking
bringing food back up, may be through your nose
the feeling that food is stuck in your throat
having issues chewing your food
problems with dribbling.

Swallowing difficulties can cause weight loss, dehydration and chest infections.

Diagnosing swallowing difficulties

Let your healthcare provider know if you have swallowing difficulties. They will ask you about your symptoms and check if any other health conditions you have may be the cause.

Your healthcare provider may refer you to a specialist for tests. These may include a:

gastroscopy—a camera is passed down through your mouth to look at your throat and stomach
swallowing study—your throat and stomach are x-rayed as you swallow small amounts of food.

Treating swallowing difficulties

How your swallowing difficulties are treated depends on the cause and how severe it is. Treatments may include:

medicines to treat acid reflux
swallowing therapy with a speech and language therapist
making changes to what you eat and drink, such as softer foods and using thickener in drinks
using special spoons, plates and cups
surgery to widen your oesophagus.
using special medication lubricants eg Gloup to help make it easier to swallow tablets etc. For more information click here.

Self care for swallowing difficulties

As well as seeing your healthcare provider, the following tips may help you to get food or liquids into your stomach.

Sit upright in a chair—at a table is best.
Have regular small meals instead of the main large meals.
Eat or drink small mouthfuls at a time.
If your voice is gurgly when you eat or drink, give a small cough to make sure your airway is clear.
Wet food will be easier to swallow as dry food can catch in your throat.
If your food has 2 consistencies, such as fruit in juice and cereal in milk, try to mix it into 1 consistency, or eat the solid and liquid portions separately.
Concentrate on eating and avoid talking.
Hot, ice-cold or fizzy liquids are easier to swallow than room temperature liquids.
If you are told to have thickened liquids, avoid ice-cream and jelly as they thin before swallowing.
Drink from the top half of you cup to avoid tipping your head back.

Have a look at our range of Gloup medication lubricants here which can help with difficulties swallowing tablets...

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