By Kathleen Berger
St. Louis, MO (KSDK) - Cardinals manager Tony La Russa's battle with shingles is raising awareness of the painful virus. LaRussa's case has more people seeking the vaccine without any luck.
The image of Tony La Russa with shingles has people wanting to know more about the virus and how to prevent it. A vaccination is all you need, but we're learning there's a shortage.
Anyone who has had the chicken pox is at risk of getting the painful rash. The zoster virus that causes chickenpox remains in the nerve cells and can become active again at any time causing shingles. Shingles is more severe in people age 60 and over, the age group approved for the vaccine.
But according to the Visiting Nurse Association, the vaccine's manufacturer says there is less of it available this year due to complexities in the manufacturing process. And LaRussa's case is prompting phone calls to the VNA's Creve Coeur facility.
"Bottom line, the increased awareness now is because of the fact that Tony La Russa does have shingles and people have seen it and they can see that it is painful and he's having a rough time with it," said Pamela Breitweiser, Visiting Nurse Association.
Many People are calling for a vaccine, and they may be finding out their doctor's office doesn't have it. So they call the Visiting Nurse Association. The VNA has received about 150 calls in the last couple of days and the VNA is all out. It isn't expecting a shipment from the manufacture, Merck & Company, until maybe the end of May, but it could come as late as early July.
KSDK