Shingles Vaccine Shows Promise for Older Adults

[laconicsax]

The herpes zoster vaccine, which has already proved effective for preventing shingles in a large clinical trial, may be even more effective in broad clinical practice.

Researchers studied 75,761 vaccinated men and women 60 and older and 227,283 unvaccinated people matched for age. All were participants in a Southern California health plan that covered the cost of the shots.

The http://jama.ama-assn.org/content/305/2/160.abstract">study, published Jan. 12 in The Journal of the American Medical Association, found a 55 percent reduction in incidence of the painful condition, consistent with the 51 percent found in the clinical trial. But it also found that the vaccine was effective across all ages, while the clinical trial had found it less effective in the oldest people tested.

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The vaccine worked equally well in both sexes, across all racial groups, and in those with chronic diseases like diabetes or kidney, lung and liver conditions.

A bit more at link:http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/25/health/research/25aging.html?src=me&ref=health

[HuckleB]

1. More good news!