One important CDC-recommended adult vaccines is Shingrix. Shingles is caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox. After you’ve had chickenpox, the virus stays asleep in your nerves and can “wake up” years later, causing a painful rash, nerve damage, and can cause long-term nerve pain in the distribution the rash was in (even AFTER the rash goes away). This is called postherpetic neuralgia.

The good news is that there’s a safe and highly effective vaccine that was approved by the FDA in 2017. I have seen patients who have zinging pain in the distribution that there rash WAS even years after their rash goes away. I got my Shingrix the week I turned 50. Getting the vaccine lowers the risk of postherpetic neuralgia dramatically—and new research shows it may even protect your brain. That sounds like a win-win to me.

CDC Guidelines: Who Should Get Shingrix?

According to the CDC, almost all adults 50 years and older should receive the shingles vaccine. The schedule is simple:

• Two doses, given 2 months or more apart,
• Recommended for adults 50 and older, even if you’ve had shingles before or are unsure whether you had chickenpox.

Adults with weakened immune systems may start the vaccine at age 19 and may receive the two doses 1 to 2 months apart. Shingrix is over 90% effective at preventing shingles and long-term nerve pain.

Immunodeficiency and immunosuppression are NOT contraindications to Shingrix. In fact, Shingrix is specifically indicated for adults aged 18 years and older who are or will be at increased risk of herpes zoster due to immunodeficiency or immunosuppression caused by known disease or therapy. In fact, Shingrix differs from the previous shingles vaccine (Zostavax) which is a live attenuated zoster vaccine, which should not be given to immunocompromised patients.

Shingrix may cause side effects for 2-3 days after the administration. These side effects include injection site pain (78%), myalgia (45%), fatigue (45%), headache (38%), injection site redness (38%), shivering (27%), injection site swelling (26%), fever (21%), and gastrointestinal symptoms (17%). Hang in there! It’s better than long-term nerve pain.

New Research: Shingles Vaccine May Lower Dementia Risk

Beyond protecting against shingles, the vaccine may have another surprising benefit: lowering the risk of dementia.

A large study reported earlier this year showed that getting the shingles vaccine reduced the risk of developing dementia by 20% over seven years. This was an exciting finding, but researchers have now gone even further. A major follow-up study published in Cell adds new insight into how the vaccine may help the brain.

Here’s what the scientists discovered:

• Cognitively healthy adults who received the vaccine were less likely to develop mild cognitive impairment, a common early warning sign before dementia.
• People who already had dementia seemed to benefit as well. Those who received the shingles vaccine were almost 30% less likely to die of dementia over nine years, suggesting the vaccine may help slow the disease’s progression.

While the exact reason isn’t fully understood, the idea is that reducing inflammation from shingles may also reduce harmful inflammation in the brain.

I hope this helps.