The connection between dementia and the shingles vaccine

I still remember having chickenpox at age six. I missed the better part of first grade.

That was decades ago. So why am I thinking about this now?

Because it makes me susceptible to a painful condition that affects about ten percent of people who have had chickenpox — and you’ve probably guessed that I’m referring to shingles.

That may not sound like a big risk. But some research I’ve read lately has me thinking more and more about getting the vaccine not only to prevent this condition, but also because of its interesting connection to dementia…

What is shingles?

Like me, you may have had chickenpox as a child. If so, you now have a virus lingering deep in the roots of your nerves that can be reactivated at any time.

If that virus wakes up, it can cause you to suffer painful blisters and searing nerve pain, possibly even long-term nerve damage.

This is shingles, also called herpes zoster after the virus that causes it.

In mild cases, you’ll have a band of fluid-filled blisters that itch intensely, most commonly appearing around the left or right side of the body.

In more severe cases, though, the pain of shingles can be so intense that even a slight breeze or pulling a sheet over the body can cause unbearable pain. This pain can last months or even years and is known as postherpetic neuralgia (PHN).

There are also several variations of shingles that have varying degrees of severity:

Ophthalmic shingles, or shingles of the eye, can cause complications including corneal ulcers and glaucoma. Acute retinal necrosis can cause blindness.

Ramsey Hunt Syndrome is a form of shingles that can have devastating results. Blisters will appear in and around the ear and mouth on one side of the face. The virus attacks a major facial nerve. Ramsey Hunt can result in loss of hearing, facial paralysis, ear pain and changes in the ability to taste.

Internal shingles happens when the virus affects the body but does not cause a rash. Symptoms may be mistaken for the flu: fever, headaches, muscle aches, chills, and swollen lymph nodes. Pneumonia, hepatitis or encephalitis can result if the virus attacks internal organs. If you feel sick, but also have these neurological symptoms, like numbness, tingling and burning under the skin, you need to get medical treatment immediately.

Shingrix does more than we bargained for

The good news: since 2006, there’s been a vaccine called Zostavax to prevent shingles — and in 2018, a new shingles vaccine called Shingrix was approved.

Unlike Zostavax, it does not use live viruses, and so is considered safer for people with compromised immune systems. But here’s an interesting “bonus” to both these vaccines:

The original Zostavax vaccine was found to reduce the risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. And the newly approved Shingrix vaccine, now the treatment of choice for shingles, reduces that risk even more.

While it’s not entirely clear what the connection is between dementia and the shingles vaccine, scientists have two possible explanations.

Here’s one: When a baby is born, certain molecules that potentially could cause inflammation and accelerate aging are silenced. But viral infections like shingles can reactivate the production of these molecules, which could lead to dementia.

Another possibility is that certain viruses, like the one that causes shingles, have the potential to support the rogue form of Amyloid-β proteins that accelerate the onset of dementia.

Over 60? You’re at higher risk

Past age 60, your shingles risk only increases with age. In clinical trials, Shingrix was shown to reduce the incidence of shingles by 97 percent in individuals 50 years and older. In another clinical trial, compared to placebo, Shingrix reduced the incidence of shingles by 90 percent in individuals 70 years of age and older.

I realize some people are not fans of vaccines. Up until now, I’ve avoided the shingles vaccine. But the news about the shingles-dementia connection has been a game-changer for me.

But the vaccine does come with some risks…

It carries an FDA warning about Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a rare neurological disorder, considered an autoimmune disease, in which the immune system attacks the nerves. In some adults over 65, there was a slightly elevated risk for developing GBS within 42 days of receiving it. Researchers describe the risk as “about three excess GBS cases per million vaccinations.”

It’s a personal decision and you may have many factors to weigh, including your family history or genetic risk for dementia.

Sources:

New Shingles Vaccine Does Even Better Job of Delaying Onset of Dementia — Science Alert

The recombinant shingles vaccine is associated with lower risk of dementia — Nature

Herpes Zoster Vaccination Reduces Risk of Dementia — nih.gov

Newer Shingles Vaccine Edges Out Its Predecessor — Jefferson Health