This statement is actually only partially true. The same virus that is responsible for chicken pox is also the cause of the adult illness shingles.

Causes, risk factors and symptoms
Shingles is caused by reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus. If you have had chicken pox infection or vaccine, the virus (varicella) remains in a dormant state in your body. The virus “wakes up” in approximately one out of five people, often many years after the initial chicken pox infection. It is estimated that about 1 million cases of shingles occur per year in the United States.

 “The possibility of shingles increases dramatically in adults over the age of 50,” said Abroo Nawaz, M.D., of WellSpan’s Adams County Internal Medicine. “Generally the risk is greater for females and those of African-American descent.”

What causes the virus to “wake up” is not exactly known although certain conditions may contribute to the virus reactivation. “The factors that may predispose one to reactivation of the virus are things that create a low immunity status,” said Nawaz.

These factors include:  stress, fatigue, or a weakened immune system due to age, disease, or medications that decrease one’s ability to keep the chickenpox virus in an inactive state. Diseases, such as cancer and HIV/AIDS, and their treatments can also leave a person’s immune system unable to keep the virus dormant.

The onset of shingles is somewhat different than chicken pox. An extreme sensitivity or pain across a broad area on one side of the body is often the first symptom. This sensation can be itching, tingling, burning, constant aching, or a deep, shooting pain.
In most cases, a rash with raised, red bumps and blisters surfaces in the same area of the pain one to three days after the pain starts. The rash and blisters can disappear in two to three weeks, but some people develop post herpetic neuralgia which means the pain remains even after the rash is gone.

Treatment and prevention
For treatment of shingles to be most effective, you should receive antiviral medication within 72 hours of the development of a shingles rash. The illness can be cured but must run its course.

Prevention of shingles is difficult, since the factors that trigger reactivation are not yet completely defined. However, in May 2006 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Zostavax®, the first vaccine for adult shingles.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that most adults age 60 and older who have had the chicken pox infection or vaccine receive the Zostavax vaccination. For some people the vaccine is not appropriate.