Jun 13, 2023 06:00:00

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

In May 2023, an unpeer-reviewed paper was

published stating that ``we found evidence that the shingles vaccine is effective in preventing dementia.'' This paper was featured in the news of the major scientific journal Nature.

Does shingles vaccination cut dementia risk? Large study hints at a link
https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01824-1

There have been several research papers suggesting a relationship between herpes zoster and dementia, but these research papers have only shown a relationship between the two, and have not been able to show a causal relationship. . A paper published by a research team at Stanford University in 2023 focused on a policy implemented in Wales to ``provide free shingles vaccines to citizens aged 70 to 79.'' By comparing the rates, we analyzed the effect of 'whether or not the herpes zoster vaccine was given' on the incidence of dementia.

Evidence that the herpes zoster vaccine is effective in preventing dementia is discovered, light is given to dementia prevention measures - GIGAZINE

As a result of the analysis, people born after September 2, 1933, who were subject to the vaccination policy, had a higher dementia incidence rate than people born before September 2, 1933, who were not subject to the vaccination policy. was found to be significantly lower.

Pascal Geldsetzer, a member of the research team, emphasized that the result that ``the incidence of dementia is reduced in a group with a high vaccination rate for herpes zoster'' is not due to chance, and this research paper has not yet been published. Although it was peer-reviewed, it received a lot of attention.

Given how robust this finding is across a large variety of specifications and series of robustness checks, it's also extremely unlikely to be due to pure chance.

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—Pascal Geldsetzer (@PGeldsetzer1) May 25, 2023

And on June 6, 2023, the above paper was featured in Nature's official news. Professor Alberto Asherio of Harvard University, who was asked for his opinion by Nature, said, ``If (this research result) is true, it is very serious. ,” he said. In addition, Professor Ruth Itzhaki of the University of Manchester, who published a research paper in 1991 that `` herpes virus was discovered in the brain of a person who died of dementia,'' said, `` This research result has been argued since 1991. This study is unique in that factors other than 'herpes zoster vaccination' can be eliminated,' he said, positively evaluating the results of the research.

On the other hand, Professor Maria Grimoire of the University of California, San Francisco said, ``Dementia develops over decades, but in this study, a decline in the incidence of dementia was observed four years after vaccination.'' Focusing on the point, ``This study is well done, but it is by no means definitive,'' arguing that more detailed analysis is needed. Also, at the time of writing the article, the herpes zoster vaccine `` Zostavax '' used during the research period was not used, and `` Shingrix '' was used instead , but the relationship between Shingrix and dementia has not been clarified.

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. Professor Grimoire also cites 'clinical trials' as the most effective means of demonstrating the causal relationship between the shingles vaccine and the reduction in the risk of developing dementia.