this, pirated from the Centers for Disease Control web page: "Shingles cannot be passed from one person to another. However, a person with active shingles can transmit the virus that causes shingles, VZV, to a person who has never had chickenpox – but only through direct contact with the shingles rash. If a person who has never had chickenpox is infected with VZV, he or she will develop chickenpox, not shingles."
some websites for more information about shingles:
http://www.shinglesinfo.com/index.ht...WT.mc_id=SH03V
http://www.cdc.gov/features/shingles/
this is a link to some anectdotal discussion among shingles patients. several prescription mediations are mentioned along with a few over-the-counter products that some found useful.
http://www.medicinenet.com/shingles/discussion-7.htm