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Bilateral shingles anyone?

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nicola27252
nicola27252

Hi there! Two weeks ago I developed an extremely itchy and painful rash above and under both my breasts, around the armpits. The drs confirmed it's shingles. He didn't seem too concerned that it's on both sides (symmetrical), but I'm now reading everywhere that it's supposed to be unilateral. And that if it is bilateral, you've got an underlying condition. I haven't felt well in a long time and thought it was perhaps my hormones (I'm only 37 though), so now I'm worried I have some sort of scary underlying disease. Anyone out there with bilateral shingles?

I found this on a medical website, but the text seems to contradict itself about it being an underlying disease or not:

On rare occasions, herpes zoster manifests bilaterally. Bilateral presentations should always raise concern for disseminated disease (and immunocompromise) or for alternate diagnosis, specifically for herpes simplex.

In cases of bilateral zoster, it is not unusual for 1 or 2 adjacent dermatomes to be involved. Unlike examples of multiple dermatomal involvement in unilateral disease (see above), involvement in adjacent dermatomes is not typically a sign of underlying disease (eg, malignancy).

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