The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends that people over 60 years of age should receive Zostavax, the new shingles vaccine. Zostavax protects about half of all seniors from developing shingles, an extremely unpleasant skin disease. Zostavax, made by Merck, was approved by the FDA in May this year.
The vaccine is only for people who have never had and do not currently have shingles. Approximately 500,000 people have shingles in the United States each year.
US federal authorities usually go along with what the Committee recommends. This will have a strong impact on whether insurance companies provide cover for it.
What is Shingles (herpes zoster)?
It is caused by the same virus that causes chicken pox (varicella-zoster). The patient has an outbreak of blisters or a rash on the skin. Usually, the first signs are a feeling of burning/tingling (painful) – sometimes accompanied by numbness and/or itching. Only one side of the body is affected.
About a week later, fluid-filled blisters appear in an area on one side of the body – the blisters look like those of chicken pox.
Patients can experience varying intensities of pain. Some just complain of a mild itch, while others cannot even tolerate a gentle breeze on their skin.
The blisters most commonly appear as a band (dermatome) around one side of the trunk, at the level of the patient’s waist.
Who is at risk of developing Shingles?
Anyone who has had chicken pox.
What is the Outlook (Prognosis)?
For healthy patients the pain eases within three to five weeks and no scars are left. If the patient is immunosuppressed – has an HIV infection, is receiving cancer treatment, takes immunosuppresant drugs after a transplant – shingles can be life-threatening.
Is Shingles Contagious?
A person with shingles can infect another person, often a child, who is then at risk of chicken pox. An adult with shingles cannot give another person shingles. Shingles only appears in people who have had chicken pox.
Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today