A recent study from the University of Oxford suggests that a new shingles vaccine could reduce the risk of dementia.
Researchers studied over 200,000 people and found that those who received the new recombinant shingles vaccine had at least a 17% lower chance of being diagnosed with dementia in the following six years.
This translates to around 164 more days lived without dementia.
The study, titled “The recombinant shingles vaccine is associated with a lower risk of dementia,” was published in Nature Medicine.
The benefits were observed in both men and women, though women saw slightly greater benefits. These findings suggest that the new shingles vaccine might offer added protection against dementia.
Shingles, a painful condition common in older adults, is caused by the Herpes zoster virus, which can reactivate in people who have had chickenpox. In 2006, a vaccine called Zostavax was introduced to protect against shingles.
Some studies suggested that Zostavax might also reduce the risk of dementia, but the results were not conclusive.
In many countries, including the UK and the U.S., Zostavax has been replaced by a more effective vaccine called Shingrix. The UK’s NHS now offers Shingrix to elderly people and other at-risk groups.
The Oxford researchers used the U.S. TriNetX electronic health records network for their study. They compared the dementia risk in people who received Shingrix after October 2017, when it replaced Zostavax in the U.S. Over 100,000 people received each vaccine.
They also compared Shingrix to vaccines for other infections like flu and tetanus.
The results showed that people who received Shingrix had a 17% lower risk of dementia compared to those who received Zostavax, and a 23-27% lower risk compared to those who got other vaccines. This means that Shingrix recipients could live 5-9 months longer without dementia.
The researchers conducted various analyses to ensure the reliability of their findings. However, they stress the need for further research before recommending the shingles vaccine to prevent or delay dementia.
Dr. Maxime Taquet, who led the study, said the findings are strong and should inspire more research. “They support the idea that the shingles vaccine might prevent dementia. If confirmed in clinical trials, this could have major implications for older adults, healthcare, and public health,” Taquet said.
Professor John Todd from the University of Oxford noted, “We need to understand how the vaccine provides this benefit. It might reduce the risk of dementia by preventing Herpes zoster infections, or the chemicals in the vaccine could have direct benefits for brain health.”
Professor Paul Harrison, who supervised the study, added, “These findings are promising. Anything that could reduce dementia risk is welcome, given the growing number of people affected by it.”
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