Post-herpetic neuralgia is a painful condition that commonly affects people recovering from shingles.¹ Using a coMra device (low level laser therapy) works to relieve post-herpetic neuralgia, and may even help to prevent it from occurring.^2,3

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UNDERSTANDING SHINGLES AND POST-HERPETIC NEURALGIA

Shingles is caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox.⁴ If you’ve had chickenpox at some point in your life, the virus will stay dormant in your body – and sometimes it can reactivate, in the form of shingles.⁴ Doctors aren’t 100% sure what causes the virus to reactivate, but we do know it can be triggered by shock, stress, low immunity or immune-supressing medications.⁴

The symptoms of shingles include a painful rash of inflamed skin and fluid-filled blisters, usually erupting in a “band” on one side of the torso or face.⁴ Other symptoms may be flu-like, such as fever, chills, fatigue and headache.^4,5

Shingles can be treated with medication such as antivirals,⁵ but the pain may last long after the skin rash has cleared.⁶ Post-herpetic neuralgia (nerve pain) is a common complication of shingles.⁶

SIGNS OF POST-HERPETIC NEURALGIA

The symptoms of post-herpetic neuralgia will typically affect the area where the shingles first broke out.⁶ Symptoms include:⁶

• Pain (burning, aching or sharp stabbing sensations) lasting 3 months or more after the rash has healed.
• Itching, tingling or numbness in the affected area.
• Extra sensitivity to touch in the affected area.

Fortunately, there’s a non-invasive and user-friendly solution available for people struggling with post-herpetic neuralgia.

Low level laser therapy (or LLLT) offers excellent pain management and relief for people with post-herpetic neuralgia.³ Not only that – studies show that using LLLT during the first days of a shingles outbreak can help to reduce the risk of post-herpetic neuralgia developing.³

coMra offers a wide variety of modalities to help with neurological issues. NEUROLOGY 16 is specifically used to treat both shingles and the post-herpetic neuralgia that can develop after shingles.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR TREATING POST-HERPETIC NEURALGIA WITH LLLT

How to apply NEUROLOGY 16:

This is a 50-minute protocol that can be done using the coMra Palm or Delta. Use your device to scan the following areas:

1. Spinal cord at 5cm intervals (1 minute per point at 1000Hz)
2. The affected side of the vertebral column (10 minutes at 50Hz)
3. Affected skin area (5 minutes at 1000Hz)
4. Affected skin area (5 minutes at 50Hz)
5. Affected skin area (5 minutes Variable)

Use this treatment together with UNIVERSAL 3 (BLOOD). Universal treatments from coMra are designed to support your body at a systemic level (in this case, the circulatory system and blood). UNIVERSAL 3 helps your body to self-heal by stimulating the cells’ regenerative processes, and improves overall wellbeing.

Read more: How to Relieve Neuralgia and Neuropathy Pain with coMra

UNIVERSAL 3 is a 10-minute treatment that targets 5 pairs of major arteries at key points on your body:

1. Carotid arteries (1 minute per point at 5Hz)
2. Subclavian arteries (1 minute per point at 5Hz)
3. Axillary arteries (1 minute per point at 5Hz)
4. Anconeal arteries (1 minute per point at 5Hz)
5. Femoral arteries (1 minute per point at 5Hz)

This should be done once every second day for 20 days.

Follow the NEUROLOGY 16 protocol once daily until you notice an improvement in your symptoms; then keep using it for another 7 days.

Let your body rest for 2 weeks, then apply UNIVERSAL 6 (VITALITY). This Universal treatment helps to speed up recuperation from illness, relieve fatigue and boost overall wellness.

If you’re concerned about scarring from the shingles rash, you can use UNIVERSAL 6 together with SURGERY 2 to treat scars.

Did You Know? There are numerous coMra treatments that can assist with overall skin health, reduce inflammation and stimulate healing. Read more: Treating Skin Conditions with coMra Therapy

For detailed instructions and safety guidelines on all our protocols, download the latest coMra User Guide.

References:

¹ WebMD. How to treat nerve pain after shingles. 2021.² Mukhtar R, Fazal MU, Saleem M, et al. Role of low-level laser therapy in post-herpetic neuralgia: a pilot study. Lasers Med Sci 35, 1759–1764 (2020).³ Chen YT, Wang HH, Wang TJ, et al. Early application of low-level laser may reduce the incidence of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN). J Am Acad Dermatol. 2016 Sep;75(3):572-577. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2016.03.050⁴ Healthline. Understanding what causes shingles to activate. 2021.⁵ WebMD. Understanding shingles – symptoms. 2021.⁶ Mayo Clinic. Post-herpetic neuralgia – symptoms and causes. 2020.