1. How is shingles caused? Herpes zoster, known in Chinese medicine as “snake sores” and “tangled waist fire dan”, and in folk medicine as “tangled waist dragon” and “raw snake “It is a common viral infectious skin disease. The annual incidence is 3-5/1000, and it occurs in middle-aged and elderly people. It is caused by Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection, which causes chickenpox as the primary infection, When the body’s immune function is reduced (e.g. after tumors, surgery, etc.), or when the body is tired, stays up late, has a cold or fever, is anxious and angry, and does not drink enough water, the virus can activate spontaneously again and cause shingles. Herpes zoster is not contagious (unless the patient has not had chickenpox) and is not seasonal. 2. What is the pattern of clinical manifestations of herpes zoster? (1) Herpes zoster often occurs in middle-aged and elderly people or in immunocompromised patients, and the incidence increases with age. (2) Usually 2 to 4 days before the appearance of herpes, the skin of the affected ganglion is itchy, numb or burning, painful, sometimes accompanied by general malaise, fever, anorexia, etc. Severe local pain can be misdiagnosed as pleurisy, appendicitis, or cholecystitis, etc. The diagnosis is not clarified until the skin rash appears. (3) Herpes is a papular rash on an erythematous base, and soon develops into blisters, corn to green bean size, arranged in clusters, and after a few days the herpes fluid is cloudy or hemorrhagic, and after about 5-10 days the herpes dries up and crusts off, leaving local pigmentation. The rash is generally unilateral and distributed by nerve segments, with clusters of herpes and pain; the older the age, the more severe the neuralgia. (4) The prevalence of herpes zoster is 15% on the head and face, 12% on the neck and collar, 55% on the chest and back, 14% on the lower back and abdomen, 3% on the sacrococcygeal region, and 1% on the body. Neuropathic pain is particularly severe and common in elderly patients and can be delayed for a long time. As countries around the world enter an aging society, the incidence of herpes zoster continues to increase, bringing great pain to the lives of patients. 3. What is the pain caused by shingles? The pain that shingles causes to patients is abnormal sensation. It is mainly neuralgia. The herpes basically subsides in 1 to 2 weeks, but the neuralgia is not so sure. Most of the neuralgia caused by shingles is stubborn, intense, sleepless and painful all night long. Whenever clothing touches the lesions localized extra sensitive, indescribably uncomfortable, sometimes inducing pain. Some local numbness and discomfort, some unbearable itching, or ant crawl feeling, etc.. Most patients have pain and sensory abnormalities lasting 1 to 4 weeks, while 7% to 33% of patients have pain that lasts for several months and can be refractory for years. The results of a number of clinical studies on herpes zoster in our department show that the possibility of residual neuralgia after herpes zoster does not occur when treated with milli-fire acupuncture with other acupuncture methods within 1 week of onset. 4, the more herpes zoster rash out, the better? It is said in folklore that the more herpes zoster rashes are emitted, the better, the more poison is emitted. Is it really true that the more the rash of shingles is sent, the better it is? The answer is no! The larger the area of the lesions of shingles, the more neuralgia will be left behind and the longer it will be. The area of the lesions of refractory post-herpetic neuralgia are large. Therefore, patients with herpes zoster should be treated as soon as possible, the earlier the faster the results. The results of several clinical studies on herpes zoster in our department show that the possibility of neuralgia remaining after herpes zoster does not occur when treated with milli-fire needles with other acupuncture methods within 1 week of onset.