Herpes zoster is an acute inflammatory skin disease caused by the varicella zoster virus, which is known in Chinese medicine as “tangle waist fire dragon” and “tangle waist fire dan”. It is also commonly known as “snake sores” and “spider sores”. The main feature is a cluster of blisters, distributed in clusters along one side of the peripheral nerve, often accompanied by significant neuralgia. The virus enters the bloodstream through the respiratory mucosa to form viremia, and varicella or latent infection occurs. When the body is stimulated (e.g. trauma, fatigue, malignant tumor or post-illness weakness), the latent virus is activated and replicates along the axon of the sensory nerve to the skin in the area innervated by the nerve, resulting in blistering and inflammation and necrosis of the affected nerve. Postherpetic neuralgia is a sequelae of herpes zoster that occurs after herpes zoster virus infection. 10% of patients have pain for more than a month, and if not treated promptly or properly, the pain can persist even after the herpes disappears, in some cases for more than a few decades. Postherpetic neuralgia is associated with age of onset and rarely occurs in patients younger than 40 years old, 50% in patients older than 60 years old, and 75% in patients older than 70 years old. The neuropathic pain left behind by the receding herpes is a typical neuropathic pain, which is recognized by the medical profession as a persistent pain and an independent disease. To date, there is no specific treatment method at home and abroad, Chinese and Western medicine. The best approach to postherpetic neuralgia is prevention. Clinical studies have proven that there are two key aspects to stop acute herpes zoster from complicating postherpetic neuralgia: first, early diagnosis and treatment of acute herpes zoster. The second is early administration of adequate antiviral drugs and adequate analgesia. Early diagnosis: It is crucial to be alert when there is a nameless, persistent burning, superficial pain in the skin (touch, clothing contact triggers severe pain) and to seek prompt consultation with a hospital dermatologist or pain unit. If the skin does not show a rash or herpes (usually the condition begins about a week after the pain, with clusters of red rashes and herpes appearing one after another on the painful skin), it is easy to be misdiagnosed by doctors unfamiliar with the disease. Treatment: Use an adequate amount of antiviral medication as early as possible. Animal experiments have confirmed that acute pain that is not controlled in time and lasts for a week triggers central sensitization, causing a qualitative change in pain that becomes chronic, intractable, and incurable. Therefore, early and adequate analgesia should never be neglected, and the most effective method is nerve block therapy, as most general analgesics are not effective. The most effective method is nerve block therapy. Patients with early, acute herpes zoster, treated with both antiviral drugs and related nerve blocks, will basically not complicate postherpetic neuralgia and shorten the treatment time of herpes zoster. The best way to treat postherpetic neuralgia is to prevent its occurrence during the acute herpes phase. Once the disease develops, it is important to visit the pain department of each hospital as early as possible. Early application of the above treatments can reduce the chance of postherpetic neuralgia and save you from unnecessary torture and pain.