Shingles
Service

The first signs of shingles can be:

• a tingling or painful feeling in an area of skin

• a headache or feeling generally unwell

A rash will usually appear a few days later. In rare cases shingles can cause pain without a rash.

Usually you get the shingles rash on your chest and tummy, but it can appear anywhere on your body including on your face, eyes and genitals.

The rash appears as blotches on your skin, on 1 side of your body only. A rash on both the left and right of your body is unlikely to be shingles.

• Treatment for shingles depends on how severe your symptoms are and whether you're at risk of complications.

• If you have a mild rash you may not need any treatment.

• You may be offered medicine (antiviral tablets) to help speed up your recovery from shingles if:

• you have a weakened immune system

• your pain or your rash is moderate or severe

• the rash is affecting other areas of your body apart from your chest, tummy and back

• You usually need to start taking the medicine within 3 days of your rash first appearing.

If you visit the pharmacy within 72 hours of your rash appearing, we can check if it is shingles and can provide a treatment with an antiviral tablets may be considered.

The pharmacist consultation is provided by NHS England and is free of charge. If you require antibiotics you can get them for free if you are entitled to free NHS prescriptions or will have to pay the standard NHS prescription charge if you pay for your medication.