Research
Managing Shingles (HZ) in Elderly with Topical Application of Acyclovir 5 mg and Increasing Immunity with Matily Herbal Drink – A Case Study
Varicella zoster virus (VZV) causes chickenpox, a self-limited disease with disseminated skin lesions that occurs mostly in childhood. It usually persists symtomatically in the dorsal root ganglia of anyone who has had chickenpox. It reactivates from its dormant state and travel along the sensory nerve, causing vesicular lesions in the dermatome supplied by that nerve in about 25% of people who had chickenpox in their childhood. These lesions, known as Herpes zoster or shingles and it causes a painful eruption of a rash, usually unilaterally. It occurs more frequently in older adults and immunocompromised individuals (1). HZ afflicts millions of older adults worldwide and causes significant suffering because of acute and chronic pain, or postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) (2). It is believed that the potential risk factors for HZ are aging and suppression of cellular immunity (1,2,3). They treat HZ with topical application of Acyclovir 5% cream. In severe cases, they prescribe Acyclovir 800 mg 5 times daily for 7 to 10 days and, they recommend taking plenty of water along with medication (4). Therefore, it is for patients with normal cardiac and kidney function.
Matily Herbal Drink May Reduce Oxidative Stress, Hyperglycemia, and Hyperlipidemia and Increases Immunity – Case Study Reports
Oxygen is an element indispensable for all aerobic organisms to sustain life (1). Cells produce energy mainly in the mitochondria through oxidative phosphorylation, a series of electron transfer in the Electron Transport Chain (ETC), where oxygen is the final electron acceptor. During this process, it creates free radicles by the mitochondria. Oxidative stress produces free radicals. A 70 Kgs man may produce nearly 2 Kg of free radicals in his body in a year (2). It is comparatively a huge amount. Examples offree radicals with one or more unpaired electrons are superoxide, hydroxyl, and nitric oxide radicals (1, 3). A molecule like oxygen is stable when it shares its electrons in the paired state, when it loses or gains an extra electron, it becomes unstable. This condition leads them to “steal†or take it from other biomolecules. This process leaves the biomolecules in the oxidative state, which can start pathological conditions. For example, when Low-Density Lipoproteins when becomingoxidized, causes atherosclerosis in the blood vessels and cause plaques inside the arteries (4).
