The Davises were excited about their newborn twin boys and couldn't wait to take them to see Mr. Davis's father. Grandfather Dav
is was excited to see his first grandsons as well and thought their visit might help take his mind off the pain of his shingles, which had suddenly appeared only days before. Which virus is responsible for Grandfather Davis's shingles?
Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is a virus with double-stranded DNA as its genome. It is a member of the family Herpesviridae. The virus causes chickenpox in children. It is mostly present in the latent form after the disease subsides and the same virus can cause shingles in adults under specific conditions. Therefore, shingles is also called a reactivated form of chickenpox caused by the latent varicella-zoster virus. The virus has an incubation period of 10 to 23 days and causes the formation of pus-filled small vesicles on the face or upper trunk.
