<P> Shingles is due to a reactivation of varicella zoster virus ( VZV ) within a person 's body . The disease chickenpox is caused by the initial infection with VZV . Once chickenpox has resolved , the virus may remain inactive in nerve cells . When it reactivates , it travels from the nerve body to the endings in the skin , producing blisters . Risk factors for reactivation include old age , poor immune function , and having had chickenpox before 18 months of age . How the virus remains in the body or subsequently re-activates is not well understood . Exposure to the virus in the blisters can cause chickenpox in someone who has not had it before , but will not trigger shingles . Diagnosis is typically based on a person 's signs and symptoms . Varicella zoster virus is not the same as herpes simplex virus ; however , they belong to the same family of viruses . </P>
<P> Shingles is due to a reactivation of varicella zoster virus ( VZV ) within a person 's body . The disease chickenpox is caused by the initial infection with VZV . Once chickenpox has resolved , the virus may remain inactive in nerve cells . When it reactivates , it travels from the nerve body to the endings in the skin , producing blisters . Risk factors for reactivation include old age , poor immune function , and having had chickenpox before 18 months of age . How the virus remains in the body or subsequently re-activates is not well understood . Exposure to the virus in the blisters can cause chickenpox in someone who has not had it before , but will not trigger shingles . Diagnosis is typically based on a person 's signs and symptoms . Varicella zoster virus is not the same as herpes simplex virus ; however , they belong to the same family of viruses . </P>
where does the shingles virus hide in the body
where does the shingles virus hide in the body
nerve cells
nerve cells