To analyze the application effect of early nursing intervention in patients with postherpetic neuralgia. Methods A total of 89 patients with postherpetic neuralgia admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University from August 2020 to May 2023 were selected as the research objects and randomly divided into reference group (n =45) and study group (n =44). The reference group was given routine nursing, and the study group was given early nursing intervention. The emotional health score, neurological sequelae pain score, sleep quality score, neurological sequelae pain symptoms, quality of life score and nursing satisfaction were compared between the two groups. Results The HAMA and HAMD scores of the two groups at 2 and 4 weeks of nursing were lower than those before nursing, and those in the study group were lower than those in the reference group (P <0.05). The VAS and PSQI scores of the two groups at 2 weeks of nursing were lower than those before nursing, and the SF-36 score was higher than that before nursing, meanwhile the VAS and PSQI scores of the study group were lower than those of the reference group, and the SF-36 score of the study group was higher than that of the reference group (P <0.05). The pain frequency and pain degree scores of the two groups at 4 weeks of nursing were lower than those before nursing, and those in the study group were lower than those in the reference group (P <0.05). The nursing satisfaction of the study group was 97.73%, which was lower than 84.44% of the reference group (P <0.05). Conclusion Early nursing intervention can effectively improve the symptoms of patients with postherpetic neuralgia, and reduce the impact of pain symptoms on sleep and quality of life.