Herpes Zoster and Post Herpetic Neuralgia in an Older Adult who was later Diagnosed with Colon Cancer. Case Report and Review of the Literature - Abstract
We feature the case of an 81 year old woman who presented thoracic herpes zoster (HZ) in November 2014, and although she was correctly and promptly treated with Aciclovir and different analgesic medications, presented a postherpetic neuralgia which was very difficult to treat as she couldn´t tolerate pain killers (digestive intolerance, falls and balance disturbances). After more than one year of the initial episode she was diagnosed with a colon cancer which she died for 15 months after the HZ episode.
We reviewed the literature and updated the topic of post herpetic neuralgia (PHN), its diagnosis, management, prognosis and prevention, and risk factors of HZ and PHN.