hi. is this shingles or herpes?

[witty]

i had red swollen labia and burning upon urination, burning upon defecating which brought me to a dr. at std clinic who said it looks just like herpes. She did all these tests and gave me acloyvir. The tests -I will not know anything until another wk. My symptoms have escalated to pain and itching and blisters now. and pain has spread from my butt to my shoulders and my forhead and my nose is itchy now. my partner of 8 years says he did research on the internet and thinks it's shingles not herpes. these problems have been going on for more than 3 weeks. Just when I start to feel better I get more blisters down there and it starts burning all over again. of course, I had tingling at various times and stabbing pains too and now I have got a sore throat. I get a fever at times but not all the time. could this be shingles? Is there much difference in shingles or herpes?

[hopingseeking]

Shingles is caused by the chickenpox virus, which for some reason, comes out very occasionally. It usually hits the elderly.. suspected reason is that their immune system is weaker.

Your symptoms and what your doctor says makes me suspect that herpes is what you have unfortunately... keep on the acyclovir, think about going to valtrex. If you want to make sure of what you have, have your doctor take a swab of your open blister asap, and also get a blood test for herpes.

[Caliope]

sounds like herpes.

Shingles is usually in places other than the genitals and usually only one one side of the body such as right or left and often on the face or the trunk of the body. It is also especially painful.

[lil'bit]

yes shingles is painful but you can get it anywhere not just limited to the areas of the trunk or neck. You gotta remember it hides between the nerves

[WaxedWrong]

sounds exactly like genital herpes.

you didnt happen to touch your face during your outbreak did you?cause with a active outbreak, its easy to spread

[bluefrog]

what is the appropriate, if there is such a thing, type of blood test to get for herpes testing? i found a web site that lists several different types, including western blot. Most of the blood tests show results (or testing) takes 1-2 weeks, except for the finger prick, which is instant. I had bloodwork done on a friday and the following tuesday my doctor called me with results (unfortunately positive results). thanks.