Clinical effect of acyclovir combined with prednisone in treatment of herpes zoster

Abstract

Objective To observe the clinical efficacy of acyclovir combined with prednisone in the treatment of herpes zoster. Methods 128 patients with herpes zoster were selected as study objects, and they were divided into the treatment group and the control group by using the method of complete random distribution, 64 cases in each group.The patients in the treatment group were treated with oral acyclovir and prednisone, while those in the control group received oral acyclovir alone.The clinical efficacy of the two groups was observed. Results The blistering, crusting and healing time had no significant differences between the two groups(t=1.76, 1.79, 1.41, all P>0.05). The analgesic time of the treatment group was (3.2±1.2)d, which was significantly shorter than (7.4±2.6)d of the control group (t=11.73, P<0.01). The total effective rate of the treatment group was 95.3%, which was significantly higher than 73.4% of the control group, the difference was significant(χ2=16.13, P<0.01). In the treatment group, there were 2 cases of postherpetic neuralgia.In the control group, 8 cases had postherpetic neuralgia.The incidence rate of adverse events in the treatment group was significantly lower than that in the control group(χ2=6.01, P<0.05). Conclusion Acyclovir combined with prednisone in the treatment of herpes zoster has significant clinical efficacy, it can shorten the analgesic time, and is worthy of clinical application. Key words: Herpes zoster; Acyclovir; Prednisone