Shingles - Questions & Answers
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From: Gay

Q :  How is shingles spread. Is it strickly contact or can it be spread through the air?

Answer : Hello Gay. Shingles is not infectious in the same way as chickenpox, where the virus can be passed on in coughs and sneezes. However, shingles is contagious. This means it can be passed on by direct contact. Fluid from shingles blisters can cause chickenpox in people who are not already immune. People with shingles should avoid those with a lowered immunity. 

Only people who have had chicken pox can get shingles. You cannot get shingles from someone who has it. Shingles occurs only when the virus that caused chicken pox, which has stayed in the body for many years, becomes active. You cannot get shingles from someone else. You can only get it from the varicella zoster virus in your own body. Someone who has never had chicken pox or the chicken pox vaccine could get chicken pox from a patient with shingles.

Source : www.aftershingles.com/faq.html

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