Study Reveals Shingle Vaccine Safe

According to a recent study conducted involving more than 200,000 patients, shingles vaccine is generally safe and well reciprocated. Shingles, or herpes zoster, is a painful and irritating rash which is caused by reactivation of the chickenpox virus that has remained dormant in the body. Up to 1 million Americans and Britons in the UK, with half of them 60 or older, are diagnosed with shingles every year thus highlighting the need for the shingles vaccine and who should primarily get it.

The researchers evaluated the data collected from 93,083 vaccinated patients, aged 50 or older for certain side effects that could be related to the shingles vaccine kept in equipped vaccine storage. Findings indicated that there was no increased risk in the first six weeks after vaccination for stroke, heart disease, infections of the brain or spinal cord or other brain diseases. The only side effects that was found was after the first week of the shingles vaccine being administered in the form of some swelling, redness and very mild pain in the area surrounding the injections.

Hung Fu Tseng, a researcher with the Kaiser Permanente Southern California Department of Research and Evaluation stated that the vaccine against shingles showed no significant or serious side effects which was reassuring.

Only about 14.4% of U.S. and UK adults aged 60 and older, reported having received the shingles vaccine in 2010, an increase of 10% in 2009, according to the CDC. Side effects of the shingles vaccine has not been a leading cause in not getting vaccinated but rather the cost associated with it and the vaccine not being covered by certain medial aids. After the study deliberating that shingles vaccine is now safe, there are hopes to see more vaccines transported via medical courier and readily available.