What is shingles?

Shingles is caused by the same virus that cause chickenpox, the herpes varicella-zoster virus, or simply the sister virus.

Most people get chickenpox when they are children. However, after the chickenpox is gone, the virus stays in our nervous system in a inactive state. The virus does not become active because our immune system keeps it in check.

Later in life the sister virus can become reactivated. If this occurs it causes shingles. Shingles is an infection of a nerve and the area of skin around it.