This Common Vaccine May Slow the Progression of Dementia or Even Prevent It

NEED TO KNOW

• The shingles vaccine may slow the progression of dementia or offer protection against developing it
• Research published in the medical journal Cell shows that the vaccine “slows or prevents disease progression across the entire disease course … of dementia”
• “We’re much more confident that what we’re actually looking at here is cause and effect,” the study’s senior author said

The shingles vaccine may show the progression of dementia and “prevent early memory decline.”

Researchers looked at health records from more than 300,000 people in Wales between 2013 and 2022, and found that the herpes zoster (HZ) vaccine (the medical term for shingles) “slows or prevents disease progression across the entire disease course … of dementia,” according to new research published in the medical journal Cell.

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The researchers found that for those living with dementia, the vaccine reduced their risk of death by 29.5%; For those who had not been diagnosed, the vaccine lessened the likelihood of being diagnosed with cognitive impairment by 3%.

“The effect of HZ vaccination — both on reducing new diagnoses of MCI and deaths due to dementia— was larger among women than men,” the study noted.

“That means that the vaccine doesn’t just have a preventive potential, but actually a therapeutic potential as a treatment, because we see some benefits already among those who have dementia,” Dr. Pascal Geldsetzer, assistant professor of medicine at Stanford University and senior author of the new study, told CNN. “To me, this was really exciting to see and unexpected.”

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The shingles vaccine is a two-dose series of shots given at age 50, or to immunocompromised adults once they turn 19, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control explains. One in three adults will develop shingles, which causes an itchy rash on one side of the body and significant, often long-term, nerve pain.

It’s caused by the same virus as chickenpox, the CDC explains — but even if you’ve had chickenpox, you should be vaccinated as the “virus stays dormant (inactive) in the body. It can reactivate years later and cause shingles.”

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Researchers accounted for eligibility requirements for the shingles vaccine in Wales and explained they were able to compare groups who were eligible with those who were not.

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“We know they should have similar physical activity level, diets, et cetera,” Geldsetzer said. “So, we’re much more confident that what we’re actually looking at here is cause and effect, rather than just correlation.”

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