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Shingles rates plummet in some adults who received certain vaccine, study finds
Fox News • • health
Key Points:
- A major study analyzing over 85 million adults' health records found a significant decline in shingles rates among younger U.S. adults, particularly those born between 1996 and 2000, coinciding with the introduction of routine childhood chickenpox vaccination.
- The incidence of shingles dropped by 62% from 46 per 10,000 in older groups to 17 per 10,000 in younger groups, supporting the idea that childhood chickenpox vaccination reduces the risk of shingles later in life.
- Shingles remains much more common in older adults, with those born between 1968 and 1975 experiencing far higher diagnosis rates compared to those born between 2006 and 2008.
- Researchers caution that the study is observational and does not confirm causation; factors like COVID-19 healthcare disruptions may have influenced diagnosis rates, and individual vaccination histories were not verified.
- Experts recommend continuing established vaccination protocols, including the shingles vaccine for eligible adults, as childhood chickenpox vaccination lowers but does not eliminate shingles risk.
