Evidence found that the herpes zoster vaccine is effective in preventing dementia, brightening up dementia prevention measures



Although there are multiple reports of evidence linking the onset of

dementia to the herpes zoster virus, no paper has been published to date showing a causal relationship between the herpes zoster vaccine and dementia prevention. Meanwhile, in May 2023, a research team at Stanford University published an unpeer-reviewed paper stating that `` the herpes zoster vaccine has a preventive effect on dementia .''

Causal evidence that herpes zoster vaccination prevents a proportion of dementia cases | medRxiv
https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.05.23.23290253 1




There are several papers that show the relationship between dementia and shingles, but those studies have not been able to show a direct causal relationship that ``dementia develops because of herpes zoster.'' The possibility that 'some factor other than herpes zoster caused dementia' could not be ruled out.

A research team at Stanford University focused on the policy of `` providing free shingles vaccines to citizens aged 70 to 79 '' that started on September 1, 2013 in Wales. Under this policy, we clearly divided the recipients of free vaccines by date of birth. there was a big difference.

In the figure below, the horizontal axis shows the week of birth when September 2, 1933 is 'week 0', and the vertical axis shows the herpes zoster vaccination rate. The figure shows an average difference of 47% in shingles vaccination rates between those born before September 2, 1933 and those born after. Based on this difference in vaccination rates, the research team concluded, ``By comparing the incidence of dementia in those born before and after September 2, 1933, the rate of shingles vaccination and cognitive We can show a causal relationship between the decline in disease incidence.”



Below is a chart summarizing the incidence of dementia in people born before and after September 2, 1933 after a 7-year follow-up survey. People born after September 2, 1933, who had a high shingles vaccination rate, were more likely to develop dementia than those born before September 2, 1933, who had a low rate of herpes zoster vaccination. was found to be significantly lower.



Since it is known that ``the incidence of herpes zoster is higher in women than in men'' and ``the factors that cause dementia are different between men and women,'' the research team also conducted a gender-specific analysis. Results showed that among women, those with higher shingles vaccination rates had lower rates of dementia.



On the other hand, we found no evidence that shingles vaccination reduces the incidence of dementia in men.



Pascal Geldsetzer , a member of the research team, said that it is unlikely that the research result that ``the incidence of dementia decreases in groups with high vaccination rates for herpes zoster vaccine'' is due to chance. In the future, the research team will conduct randomized controlled trials and work to elucidate the mechanism by which the herpes zoster vaccine reduces the risk of developing dementia.

・Continued
The paper was featured in Nature News. Several experts have expressed positive opinions and concerns.

What are the experts' views on Nature's findings that the shingles vaccine helps reduce the risk of developing dementia? -GIGAZINE



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