Characteristics of patients with herpes zoster on presentation to practitioners in France

There have been many epidemiological studies of chickenpox but only a few o f herpes zoster. We report data from an observational study, conducted in F rance during a 1-year period, of 9038 patients who presented with acute her pes zoster (n = 8103) or postherpetic neuralgia (PHN; n = 935) at the offic e practices of 4635 general practitioners or dermatologists. The incidence of herpes zoster in France was found to be similar to that in the literatur e: from 1.4 to 4.8 cases per 1000 population per year. The patient profiles and clinical patterns were delineated, as well as the management decisions made according to the type of treating physician. The impact of herpes zos ter on quality of life was evaluated on the basis of the Medical Outcome St udy Short Form 36 (MOS SF 36) scale, which is widely used for assessing qua lity of life in the field of health. This study provides reference data on the substantial deterioration in quality of life associated with herpes zos ter and PHN.