I was just diagnosed with shingles and have a rash on my torso.  Just started antivirus medicine this afternoon.I was planning to visit my elderly mother (86) next Saturday but very concerned she may catch this. She thinks she had chickenpox but unsure. Should I cancel?
Hello are a patient of shingles and your mother had chicken pox. Note down this and read carefully. In shingles in the normal host, lesions may remain few and continue to form only for a period of 3 to 5 days. The total duration of disease is generally between 7 and 10 days ; however it may take as long as 2 to 4 weeks for the skin to return to normal. When any patient who had chicken pox may get this disease from infected person (as you may spread this to your mother). Varicella-Zoster virus infections have two types .1 VARICELLA (CHICKENPOX IN CHILD Chat Doctor. 2 Herpes Zoster (shingles in adults). So chickenpox infected person may get infection very rapidly. In my opinion at least you should remain away from your mother for 4 weeks. Good luck.