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Health

Betrayed by your body: understanding shingles, staph and endometriosis

We worry about “catching” illnesses, but there are some that lie dormant, waiting to launch a surprise attack. Here are three of the most common — and how you can protect yourself.
Naked woman in fetal position Photo, Bruno Dayan/Trunk Archive.

Shingles

Once considered an elderly person’s disease, shingles is increasingly afflicting adults of all ages. “Shingles is still most common after age 50,” says Dr. Julia Carroll, a Toronto-based dermatologist. “However, I’m seeing it in more and more young people. I think it has a lot to do with our current crazed, 24-hour lifestyle. The increased stress suppresses the immune system.” Early-onset shingles comes with added health risks: A study in Neurology found that people ages 18 to 40 who have had shingles are 74 percent more likely to have a stroke later in life.

What it is

Shingles is caused by the varicella zoster virus, the same one that causes chicken pox. After you’ve had chicken pox, the virus lies inactive in your nerve tissue and can reactivate itself years later in the form of shingles. (You can’t get shingles if you’ve never had chicken pox.)

Signs & symptoms

Shingles usually appears as a stripe of blisters around one side of the torso. It may also show up as a small blister or a larger red rash and is often itchy or painful. People with shingles also tend to experience flu-like symptoms, such as fever, fatigue, chills and body aches.

Prevention & Treatment

“The easiest way to avoid shingles is to not get chicken pox,” says Carroll. “If you haven’t had chicken pox, you should get vaccinated.” Stress management and keeping your immune system in top working order with a healthy diet and exercise reduce your risk of getting shingles early on. After about age 50, you can also ask your doctor for a varicella zoster vaccine. It won’t guarantee you won’t get shingles, but it will reduce the severity of the disease if you do.

If you think you may have shingles, visit a doctor as soon as possible. An antiviral drug can stop the virus from replicating; however, it must be taken within the first three days of symptoms showing up to be effective. Early treatment can speed healing and reduce the risk of complications, which can include skin infections, neurological problems, vision loss and post-herpetic neuralgia (a condition where pain continues after the rash has healed).

Staph Infection

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Staphylococcus aureus bacteria are the biggest cause of serious infections and infection-related deaths in North America. More than two million people in the U.S. will contract staph infections this year alone. While most will be minor skin infections, 70,000 Americans will develop staphylococcal pneumonia, and another 40,000 will wind up with endocarditis, an infection of the inner lining of the heart — both of which can be fatal.

What it is

Staph infections are caused by Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, which up to 30 percent of people carry in their mucous membranes (such as nostrils and lips) and on their skin. Most of the time, these bacteria are harmless; however, some strains of staph bacteria can cause minor infections, and others can be deadly if they penetrate more deeply into your body.

Signs & Symptoms

If staph bacteria get into your respiratory tract or below your skin through a cut, infections may occur. Sometimes they’re minor, but more severe strains of the bacteria can spread rapidly and require urgent medical treatment. You should head to the emergency room if a rash or a reddened patch of skin appears and is warm, painful or pus-filled, or if you develop a high fever.

Prevention & Treatment

Most staph infections are treated with oral or, in extreme cases, intravenous antibiotics. Researchers at the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine have developed a vaccine to prevent all staph infections: everything from basic boils to life-threatening antibiotic-resistant strains of staph. The latter are becoming more common, with infections of the most serious strain of staph bacteria (USA300) on the rise.

“The vaccine is similar to the tetanus shot in that it’s a biologically inactive form of the toxin that’s injected to cause immunity without illness,” says the study’s lead researcher, Dr. Patrick Schlievert. Researchers are in the early stages of human testing. “The goal is for everyone to get it within the next five years — we hope to include it in the tetanus shot.” Children would need to get regular booster shots over several years before they’re immune for life.

Endometriosis

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Endometriosis affects approximately 775,000 Canadian women and is a leading cause of gynecological hospitalization. “It winds its way through every aspect of a woman’s life, from relationships to physical pain,” says Heather Guidone, surgical program director at the Center for Endometriosis Care in Atlanta. The condition may increase the risk of miscarriage and can make it difficult for women to conceive. Studies show it may also increase the risk of ovarian and breast cancers.

What it is

Tissue similar to the lining of the endometrium is located outside the uterus. It’s usually in the pelvic area, but in rare instances the endometrium-like tissue can be found in the back of the knee, the diaphragm, the lungs and even the brain. It’s believed some women are born with the misplaced tissue, which becomes problematic later in life due to a genetic or immune-response trigger.

Signs & symptoms

The most common symptom is pain in the pelvic area, especially during menstruation. Pain varies among women. Some lesions remain relatively painless for years, and others (especially near nerves) cause debilitating pain that can leave women bedridden. Endometriosis can also lead to painful intercourse and bowel movements, fatigue, bloating and backaches.

Prevention & Treatment

The only way to know for sure if you have endometriosis is through laparoscopic surgery. “The good news is that if you do have endometriosis, it can be removed during the surgery,” says Guidone. Although the results are usually good, endometriosis can return, and in extreme cases a hysterectomy may be necessary.

The primary cause of the condition is believed to be genetic. Medication, some IUDs and oral contraceptives are the most common treatments, but they only treat the symptoms, says Guidone. Diet can also help. “Inflammation plays a big role in pain and infertility,” says Guidone. Avoiding inflammatory foods, such as sugar, alcohol, sodium and soy, can make a difference. “It’s a process of trial and error to find out which foods have the biggest impact,” she says. For example, a recent Italian study found that 75 percent of endometriosis patients had reduced pain when they adopted a gluten-free diet.

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