Vaccine effective against herpes zoster, postherpetic neuralgia, industry study finds
Real-world data on the recombinant zoster vaccine showed that vaccine effectiveness was 73.9% against herpes zoster and 83.7% against postherpetic neuralgia among those who got two doses. With one dose, the rates were 60.3% and 45.6%, respectively, the industry-funded study concluded.
Two doses of recombinant zoster vaccine were effective in preventing herpes zoster and postherpetic neuralgia in adults aged 50 years and older, with durable protection, an industry-funded study of real-world data found.
To study the real-world effectiveness of the vaccine, researchers conducted a cohort study at a large health system in Southern California, matching patients who received one or two doses from April 2018 to December 2020 1:4 with unvaccinated individuals by age, sex, and race/ethnicity. Patients were followed until December 2022. Manufacturer GSK supported the study. Results were published by Clinical Infectious Diseases on June 23.
The vaccinated cohort included 102,766 patients (median age, 68 years) who received two zoster vaccine doses four weeks to six months apart) and 192,984 who received at least one dose. In those who got two doses, vaccine effectiveness was 73.9% (95% CI, 71.8% to 75.8%) against herpes zoster and 83.7% (95% CI, 75.1% to 89.3%) against postherpetic neuralgia. With one dose, the effectiveness was 60.3% (95% CI, 56.4% to 63.9%) and 45.6% (95% CI, 11.4% to 66.6%), respectively. Overall, the zoster incidence rate was 9.2 per 1,000 person-years in unvaccinated patients and 2.6 per 1,000 person-years in those who got two doses.
Effectiveness against herpes zoster infection was comparable across individuals with concomitant vaccinations and different comorbidities and stable for four years after vaccination.
The study authors wrote, “Taken together, these data provide evidence for the effectiveness of [recombinant zoster vaccine] in preventing [herpes zoster] and [postherpetic neuralgia] and highlight the importance of vaccination according to the recommended schedule.”