Zoster vaccine associated with lower risk of shingles
Vaccination for herpes, zoster, a painful rash commonly known as shingles, among a large group of older adults was associated with a reduced risk of this condition, regardless of age, race or the presence of chronic diseases, according to a study in an issue of JAMA.
The authors write “The pain of herpes zoster is often disabling and can last for months or even years, a complication termed postherpetic neuralgia”.
Although prelicensure data provided evidence that herpes zoster vaccine works in a select study population under idealized circumstances, the vaccine needs to be evaluated in field conditions to show whether benefits of the vaccine can be generalized to conditions of clinical practice, according to background information in the article.
The researchers note that this is particularly important for the herpes zoster vaccine, given the medical and physiological diversity in the elderly population for whom the vaccine is indicated.
Herpes zoster vaccine was licensed recently, however,to date, herpes zoster vaccine uptake has been poor due to weaknesses in the adult vaccine infrastructure and also due to serious barriers to the vaccine among clinicians and patients.
“Solutions to these challenges need to be found so that individuals seeking to receive herpes zoster vaccine will be able to reduce their risk of experiencing this serious condition,” the authors conclude.
