Abstract
Herpes zoster affects approximately 1 million people annually in the United States, with postherpetic neuralgia as the most common complication. The frequent prescription of opioids as the first-line medication for herpes zoster or postherpetic neuralgia contributes to the increasing health care costs of their treatment. Despite the advent of internet retailers providing alternative products for the prevention and management these conditions, there are limited studies on the availability, ingredients, and consumer preference for the products. This study used the internet retailer Amazon to determine the availability of products for the management of herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia, and assessed consumer preference based on listed ingredients. The internet retailer Amazon was used to perform a search for products related to "shingles" in September 2020. Top products sorted by reviews and ratings were determined to be either shingles-specific (including "shingles" in either the product title or description) or shingles-nonspecific. Analysis of price, rating, type of vehicle, and ingredients was performed. The types of vehicles, ingredients, and percentages of positive and negative reviews related to "shingles" of the product groups were analyzed with a two-tailed two-sample proportions Z-test to assess the difference between shingles-specific and shingles-nonspecific products. Statistical significance was judged at P<.05. The top 131 products among over 3000 products retrieved were determined based on a rating of 4 or more stars after searching for the term "shingles" on Amazon. Forty-six of the 131 products (35.1%) were shingles-specific. Shingles-nonspecific products were more likely to have positive reviews mentioning "shingles" (P=.005). Vehicles, balms (P=.02), and salves (P=.04) were more likely to be shingles-specific, whereas tablets or capsules (P=.002) were more likely to be shingles-nonspecific. Among the ingredients analyzed, aloe vera was the top-ranked ingredient, included in 29 of the 131 total products (22.1%). Aloe vera (P=.01), lemon balm (P<.001), vitamin E (P=.03), and peppermint oil (P=.008) were more likely to be included in the shingles-specific products, whereas magnesium (P=.01) was more likely to be included in shingles-nonspecific products. There is an abundance of products and ingredients being used for the management and treatment of shingles with certain ingredients preferred by consumers. There is a discrepancy between approved ingredients and the ingredients preferred by consumers. Furthermore, there are insufficient studies on ingredients used by consumers on internet retailers such as Amazon, and future studies can focus on the effectiveness of popular ingredients to decrease misinformation on the internet.
Highlights
MethodsShingles, or herpes zoster (HZ), is caused by reactivation of latent varicella zoster virus (VZV) in the sensory neurons, typically after the primary infection of chicken pox in childhood [1,2]
Aloe vera (P=.01), lemon balm (P
There is an abundance of products and ingredients being used for the management and treatment of shingles with certain ingredients preferred by consumers
Summary
MethodsShingles, or herpes zoster (HZ), is caused by reactivation of latent varicella zoster virus (VZV) in the sensory neurons, typically after the primary infection of chicken pox in childhood [1,2]. Previous studies have shown that more than 95% of adults across North America and Europe are at risk for HZ, and approximately 1 million people are affected by HZ in the United States annually [2,3]. Postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) is the most common complication of HZ, which is defined as the persistence of acute HZ pain in a dermatomal distribution that lasts over 3 months [1,3,6,7]. PHN can cause allodynia, hyperalgesia, anesthesia, and other sensory deficits of the affected dermatome [3,9]. Herpes zoster affects approximately 1 million people annually in the United States, with postherpetic neuralgia as the most common complication. Despite the advent of internet retailers providing alternative products for the prevention and management these conditions, there are limited studies on the availability, ingredients, and consumer preference for the products
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have