Herpes zoster is a viral disease that usually infects the individual in childhood, causing chickenpox (chickenpox). The virus goes through a stage of hematological dissemination until it reaches the skin and then travels through the peripheral nerves until reaching the nerve ganglia, where it can remain dormant for life.
“Several situations, such as in patients with diseases such as AIDS, leukemia, Hodgkin’s disease and others, can cause a reactivation of the virus, making it move along the peripheral nerve until reaching the skin, causing the characteristic eruptions of this disease”, he explains Dr. Giovanna Mori Almeida, dermatologist at the Hospital Albert Sabin (HAS).
Patients undergoing treatment with immunosuppressants, such as prolonged use of corticosteroids, for example, and people who have had contact with those infected with chickenpox, or even with another zoster patient, can develop the disease.
Herpes zoster can leave complications even after the acute infection phase has resolved. “This happens because during the inflammatory process of the virus infection, the patient can have a permanent damage to the nerve or the root, called post-herpetic neuralgia”, says the HAS neurologist, Dr. Felipe Saad.
Symptoms are usually neuralgic pain that precedes the skin lesions and treatment must be started as early as possible, with antiviral drugs and analgesics. “The earlier the medical intervention, the lesser the chances of complications and postherpetic neuralgia,” cautions Dr. Giovanna.
Other sequelae that herpes zoster can cause are:
– Involvement of the trigeminal nerve, particularly of the ophthalmic branch, which can damage the cornea;
– Involvement of the facial nerve (Bell’s Palsy), leading to facial distortion;
– Involvement of the geniculate nerve, due to lesions in the facial and auditory nerve, which can cause tinnitus, vertigo and hearing disorder.
Diagnosis of the disease is made through clinical examination and patient history. “Before the sores appear, the individual may experience a strange sensation, such as an unpleasant touch of the skin, called anodynia,” adds Dr. Saad.
It is important to emphasize that there is a vaccine against herpes zoster, approved by ANVISA and indicated mainly for patients over 50 years of age, which is the phase with the highest risk of infection. Vaccination also helps to reduce acute and chronic pain, however, it is not effective on type 1 herpes (oral) and type 2 herpes (genital), only on type 3 (zoster).
Hospital becomes a reference in the west side of São Paulo.
With 50 years of experience, Hospital Albert Sabin is undergoing a complete revitalization and is positioned as the main health center in Lapa and region.
With the mission of promoting health, seeking excellence in care processes, continuous improvement and operational efficiency, the history of Hospital Albert Sabin de SP (HAS), which completed 50 years in 2020, dates back to the 1970s with the acquisition of Lapa Assistencia Doctor. In the following years, the building that still houses the hospital was built.
From the 2000s onwards, its partners began the process of revitalization and modernization of the hospital, through renovations and the acquisition of new equipment with state-of-the-art technology, culminating in 2016 with the expansion and new renovation, doubling the number of beds.
Humanization, care, attention and respect are the values that guide all the activities of the team and the medical center as a whole, providing patients with state-of-the-art equipment that guarantee more safety and high success rates in surgeries and treatments.
The services offered to the population, always with a high degree of quality, are the most complete and diverse, such as:
– 24-hour prompt service – Prepared to respond quickly and efficiently to emergencies and urgencies, Hospital Albert Sabin has a high-level multidisciplinary team and has several specialties, such as Cardiology, General Practice, Orthopedics and General Surgery.
– Urgent and elective admissions – For clinical and surgical procedures, it offers humanized care with total peace of mind, with comfortable rooms and full hotel service, adult ICU, with professionals prepared to assist patients in all intensive procedures with complete safety and agility, and a nursing team trained to the highest standards of excellence. It also has an infirmary, with all the comfort of the apartments, however, with two beds per facility.
– Surgeries – Surgical Center with high quality facilities and the best equipped in the region, offering care with total safety and care in the most diverse specialties, such as Cardiology, Oncology, Bariatric Surgery, Orthopedic, Thoracic, Otorhinolaryngology, Neurological, Urological, Gynecological, Vascular, Plastic and General. Also, the Surgical Arch provides greater precision for performing procedures, especially for Orthopedic, Neurosurgery and Vascular Surgery.
– UCO (Coronary Unit) – Specialized in the treatment of adult patients with heart problems who are at high risk and need intensive care with 24-hour monitoring. The team is always prepared to provide the necessary specialized assistance to all patients during cardiac procedures or in the following events: Chest Pain, Acute Coronary Syndromes, Decompensated Heart Failure, Unstable Arrhythmia, Acute Aortic Syndrome and Post-Arrest Cardiopulmonary Syndrome.
– Specialties – In order to meet the most varied needs of its patients, HAS has teams in practically all areas, such as Arrhythmology, Maxillofacial, Cardiology, Cardiac Surgery, General Surgery, Plastic Surgery, General Practice, Dermatology, Endocrinology, Physiotherapy, Gastroenterology, Gynecology, Hematology, Infectology, Neurosurgery, Neurology, Nutrology, Ophthalmology, Oncology, Orthopedics, Otorhinolaryngology, Pulmonology, Proctology, Psychiatry, Urology and Vascular..
Always thinking of the comfort of its patients and trying to serve the greatest number of people who come to the hospital, HAS serves and works with various health plans and plans.
Hospital Albert Sabin also performs laboratory, imaging and cardiac examinations, diagnosis and therapy services with the very latest in equipment and unparalleled professional quality. Among these services are Pathological Anatomy, Bronchoscopy, Colonoscopy, Transcranial Doppler, Echocardiogram, Echodoppler, Electrocardiogram, Upper Digestive Endoscopy, Hemodynamics, Pulmonary Function Test, Chemotherapy, Radiology in General, Computed Tomography/Angiotomography, Ultrasonography and Magnetic Resonance Imaging/ Angioresonance.
It is impossible not to be surprised by the structure and quality of the Albert Sabin Hospital, acquired in 50 years of hard work and personal abnegation of its supporters and employees, always seeking the well-being of its patients, employees and the general population that seeks it . It really is a complete medical center with excellence in all the areas it has set out to work on.
The hospital and its professionals work with safety protocols and international certifications to ensure safe processes for their patients, caregivers and teams. It is worth emphasizing the efforts made by the hospital in the adoption of safety measures, in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic, by adopting separate entrances and facilities for elective patients and the separation, in the emergency room, of people suspected of being infected by the new coronavirus already in the screening.
HAS: Your life is our care!
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