A recent study published in the journal Nature Medicine suggests that being vaccinated against shingles may potentially delay the onset of dementia. The study, which compared the health records of over 100,000 people who had received either a new shingles jab or an older one, found that those who had the new jab had an average of 164 extra days free from a dementia diagnosis over a six-year period.
Shingles is a painful condition caused by the reactivation of the Herpes zoster virus, which also causes chicken pox. A vaccine against shingles has been available for about 18 years, and there is growing evidence that it may have unintended benefits, such as protecting against dementia.
The study, conducted by researchers from the University of Oxford, compared the health records of people in the US who had received the older Zostavax jab with those who had received the newer Shingrix jab. While similar numbers of people in both groups ultimately developed dementia, those who had received Shingrix had 17% more time without a dementia diagnosis. The benefits were particularly pronounced in women.
Study author Prof Paul Harrison emphasized the significance of the findings, noting that a delay of 164 days in receiving a dementia diagnosis is not trivial on a public health level. Dr Sheona Scales of Alzheimer’s Research UK highlighted the importance of finding new ways to reduce the risk of dementia and noted that the study suggests a potential link between the Shingrix vaccine and a reduced risk of dementia.
However, the researchers caution that further research is needed to definitively establish the link between the shingles vaccine and a reduced risk of dementia. They suggest that the herpes viruses may play a role in promoting dementia, and that the vaccine may be preventing the reactivation of the virus, thereby delaying the onset of dementia.
In the UK, a free shingles vaccine is available to eligible individuals, with older vaccines being replaced by Shingrix. The vaccine is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, although the company was not involved in the research study.