The Surprising Rise of Painful Shingles Blisters in People Under 50

Shingles isn’t just for old people anymore! In the U.S., one in 3 adults will get shingles in their lifetime, and now more young people have been diagnosed with the disease, too, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). What’s behind this trend? Researchers aren’t entirely sure, but they’ve got some clues.

What Is Shingles?

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Shingles is a viral infection caused by the varicella-zoster virus. It can reactivate in adulthood after lying dormant in anyone who had it as chickenpox.

Shingles typically presents as a rash or group of blisters, often on the side of the torso. The rash is usually painful and itchy, and can feel like the skin is burning. Fluid-filled blisters, sensitivity to touch, fatigue, and fever may also accompany it. 

Can Young People Get Shingles?

Yes, young people can get shingles, but it’s important to note that people who are younger than age 25, who got the two-dose chickenpox vaccine known as varicella vaccine, are not getting shingles very much, says Jennifer Moffat, a microbiologist who specializes in shingles and chickenpox at the SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, New York.

You can get shingles if you have never had chickenpox, but it’s mostly those over age 25 who were children before the varicella vaccine was around and instead got what’s called the “wild virus” or actual chickenpox. Those who got chickenpox or were around people who got chickenpox are getting more shingles than in the past,” says Moffat. 

Read More: Viruses: What They are, How They Spread, and How We Fight Them

Why Are More Younger People Getting Shingles?

According to Moffat, the short answer is that although many smart people have made many hypotheses about why numbers are increasing in the age 25-50 cohort, research doesn’t point to any particular reason why these numbers are increasing.

“One hypothesis is that our society goes to the doctor at the drop of a hat,” says Moffat. The term is referred to as “care-seeking,” and it means that we’re more likely than we used to be to go to the doctor the moment we have a rash.

Another thought is that doctors are seeing the condition more often and are better trained to know what it is and diagnose it than in years past. As a result, says Moffat, “it’s entering the medical records more often.”

There was also a thought that the population as a whole is less healthy today, which causes their immune systems to be suppressed. Still, even as doctors have looked at all these ideas up and down, they’ve yet to show this in any medical literature. The bottom line, says Moffat,

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