U.S. News & World Report – While there is no cure for shingles, the FDA-approved Shingrix shingles vaccine can significantly prevent an outbreak.
While people might assume that shingles – a painful, blistering rash – only affects older adults, 1 in 3 adults who have had chickenpox are susceptible to it.
Here’s what you need to know about shingles and the vaccine.
Shingles, also known as herpes zoster, is a viral infection caused by the varicella-zoster virus, which is the same virus that causes chickenpox.
When a person of any age gets the varicella-zoster virus, some of the virus remains dormant in central nerve cells. When the immune system is challenged by stress, the virus can reactivate as shingles.
Most commonly, shingles causes a painful rash that may appear as blisters across the stomach area.
Sometimes, the shingles rash occurs around the eye, neck or face. Some shingles patients report feeling sheer misery.
While there is no cure for shingles, the Food and Drug Administration-approved Shingrix shingles vaccine can significantly prevent a shingles outbreak and a painful complication, called postherpetic neuralgia.
“The chance of getting shingles increases with age, which is why shingles vaccination is recommended for all healthy adults 50 years and older,” says Dr. Robert H. Hopkins Jr., medical director of the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases in Bethesda, Maryland.
“There is also an increased risk for shingles in those with immune suppression, which is why shingles vaccine is also recommended for adults ages 19 years and older who have weakened immune systems because of disease or therapy.”
Studies show the vaccine is more than 90% effective at preventing shingles and its complications, including postherpetic neuralgia, across all age groups, including older adults.
