Is shingles contagious? A. Shingles, the painful and blistery rash that arises when the chickenpox virus becomes reactivated, can be contagious, but only for people who are not already immune to chickenpox. Those who have never had chickenpox or been vaccinated against it are at risk for developing chickenpox — not shingles — if they come in contact with fluid from the blisters of a shingles patient. The blisters are contagious until they crust over, “and people should keep them covered,” said Dr. Pritish K. Tosh, an infectious disease specialist with the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn. Chickenpox is transmitted through contact with an infected person’s respiratory droplets or their lesions, which contain the varicella zoster virus.

Source: New York Times May 25, 2018 09:00 UTC