Hi Sylvia
Yes I did ask about the pain, and they said she seemed to be in a bit more pain than usual. Fortunately/unfortunately she's already on Tramadol for her arthritis.
Actually it's fortunate in a way that's she's in the NH: if this had happened before the strokes she almost certainly would not have called the doctor, or not until it was too late for the anti-virals to possibly affect it. Also, although the nursing home mentioned the sort of thing you did (i.e. the chicken pox virus being carried in by a visitor or worker) my understanding is that shingles, although caused by that virus, is not triggered by exposure to it. In other words you have to have chicken pox at some point in the dim and distant past and then some other event (often another virus, or simply being weak) will cause that dormant virus, which is hiding out in your body somewhere, to travel up a nerve fibre and start the shingles episode.
I suppose what concerns me most about this is the possibility that this means her immune system is compromised. I mean it's not unreasonable that a 90 year old should have a compromised immune system, but once that starts to happen, one can't help wondering if this is the beginning of the end, if you see what I mean. Well that, and the possibility of post herpetic neuralgia which gets more likely the older you are. My poor mother can't take any MORE pain.
Jennifer