July 25, 2024 – Need one more reason to finally start Shingles vaccine? It could reduce your risk of one other dangerous disease: dementia.
And there are numerous individuals who could still get that potential bonus, since only an estimated 30% of eligible Americans have received the two-dose shingles vaccine, referred to as Shingrix, to date, in line with government data.
Shingrix – the newer recombinant shingles vaccine – is more practical in reducing the danger of dementia than Zostavax, the sooner live shingles vaccine, in line with a brand new study from Natural medicinePrevious studies had found that taking Zostavax (which was discontinued within the US in 2020) might also reduce the danger of dementia, but data on this were minimal.
Researchers on the University of Oxford examined electronic health data from greater than 200,000 Americans over the age of 65. Shingrix led to a significantly lower risk of developing dementia inside 6 years of vaccination.
After the Shingrix vaccination, the time to diagnosis of dementia increased by 17%. This means that individuals who actually develop dementia after vaccination live a median of 164 days longer without the disease.
The results also show that the consequences were greater in women (22%) than in men (13%). More studies are needed to grasp exactly why the shingles vaccine may delay dementia and why women feel stronger effects than men, the researchers said today during a press conference.
“Many vaccines contain adjuvants or chemicals designed to make your body respond strongly enough to the vaccine to get the protection you want,” said study co-author Paul Harrison, a physician and professor of psychiatry on the University of Oxford.
The other possibility, he said, is that the Shingrix vaccine incorporates different and possibly more practical ingredients and that it’s those chemicals that help, not necessarily the vaccine itself.
According to the CDC, by 2023 there have been nearly 7 million people living with dementia within the United States, and greater than 900,000 people within the United Kingdom.
It's also essential to notice that the study results suggest the shingles vaccine may delay dementia but not necessarily prevent it, in line with study co-author Dr. Maxime Taquet, a clinical lecturer on the U.K.'s National Institute for Health and Care Research. But a 5-month delay in dementia diagnosis is not any small feat, and such findings could have significant public health implications, Harrison said.
Shingles comes from Herpes zoster virus – the identical virus that causes chickenpoxIn fact, about 10% of people that have previously had chickenpox will get shingles later in life. Shingles, which affects about 1 million Americans annually, often begins as a cluster of small bumps that later turn into fluid-filled blisters. The fluid dries up and the blister often crusts over after about 7 to 10 days. It is usually very painful.
To prevent shingles, the CDC recommends two doses of the Shingrix vaccine for healthy adults ages 50 and older. Certain immunocompromised people ages 19 and older are also advisable to get vaccinated.
“Shingles is an uncomfortable and serious infection that causes severe pain during the blistering phase,” Harrison said. “For some people, this pain lasts a very long time, and for some people, depending on which nerve is affected by the shingles, it can lead to blindness or other long-term consequences.”
Learn more about Shingleson Here. Go Here for details about dementia.