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Postherpetic Neuralgia: Difficult to Treat, Easier to Prevent

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Herpes Zoster: Postherpetic Neuralgia and Other Complications

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Abstract

The first quotation describes the situation as the virus lies dormant and asymptomatic and difficult to detect but likely easier to prevent by vaccination, whereas later with the eruption of the characteristic painful rash of herpes zoster (HZ), it becomes easy to diagnose but difficult to treat.

For it happens…in the beginning the malady is easy to cure but difficult to detect but in time, not having been detected or treated, it becomes easy to detect but difficult to cure.

Nicola Machiavelli, The Prince

A kindly understanding doctor who will keep in touch with his patients with intractable postherpetic neuralgia even for a very long time is extremely valuable therapeutically.

Edgar Hope-Simpson [25]

The efficient physician is he who amuses his patients while nature effects a cure.

The philosophical dictionary, Voltaire (1694–1778)

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada

    C. Peter N. Watson

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  1. C. Peter N. Watson
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Correspondence to C. Peter N. Watson .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, University of Toronto Department of Medicine, TORONTO, Ontario, Canada

    C. Peter N. Watson

  2. College of Physicians & Surgeons, Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons, New York, New York, USA

    Anne A. Gershon

  3. Department of Medicine, Division of Infectious Diseases, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA

    Michael N. Oxman

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Watson, C.P.N. (2017). Postherpetic Neuralgia: Difficult to Treat, Easier to Prevent. In: Watson, C., Gershon, A., Oxman, M. (eds) Herpes Zoster: Postherpetic Neuralgia and Other Complications. Adis, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-44348-5_19

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-44348-5_19

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