{"id":83127,"date":"2025-05-14T18:32:06","date_gmt":"2025-05-15T00:32:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/?p=83127"},"modified":"2026-02-19T11:17:05","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T18:17:05","slug":"shingles-vaccines-prevent-painful-infections-and-cut-the-risk-of-dementia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uchealth.org\/today\/shingles-vaccines-prevent-painful-infections-and-cut-the-risk-of-dementia\/","title":{"rendered":"Shingles vaccines prevent painful infections and sharply cut the risk of dementia"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"Shingles
Shingles vaccines are vital for preventing this painful infection, and new research also shows that getting shingles vaccines can reduce the risk of dementia later in life. Photo: Getty Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Doctors in Colorado played a key role in developing the first shingles vaccines in the world.<\/p>\n

Vaccine makers now have developed an even better shingles vaccine, and it works very well to prevent this painful viral infection, which affects more than 1.2 million Americans each year.<\/p>\n

Along with preventing shingles, new studies also show<\/a> that shingles vaccines significantly cut the risk of dementia.<\/p>\n

To answer your top questions about shingles and the current shingles vaccine, we consulted with Dr. Myron Levin<\/a>, who helped develop the world\u2019s first shingles vaccines.<\/p>\n

Levin is an internal medicine specialist and a professor of pediatrics and infectious diseases at the University of Colorado School of Medicine <\/a>on the Anschutz Medical Campus<\/a>. He has conducted clinical trials for decades and encourages everyone ages 50 and older \u2014 along with younger immunocompromised adults \u2014 to get the shingles vaccine since it\u2019s safe, effective and has multiple benefits.<\/p>\n

Levin recently received recognition as the top researcher on shingles in the world<\/a> in terms of papers published and research cited \u2014 between 2000 and 2022. Scientists in the United States led the world in research on shingles, and Levin and colleagues at the University of Colorado School of Medicine topped the list of institutions with the most publications and citations.<\/p>\n

What is shingles?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Shingles is an infection<\/a> that causes a characteristic rash, associated with pain that can last for several months or longer in some people.

Learn more about shingles symptoms and treatment in this overview story.<\/a><\/div>\n

The varicella-zoster virus causes shingles. It\u2019s the same virus that causes chickenpox. For anyone who ever had chickenpox, the virus stays in the body, migrates into certain nerve cells and lurks \u201csilently\u201d until it later can reactivate, triggering shingles.<\/p>\n

How would I know if I have shingles?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A painful, itchy rash breaks out in a localized area on one side of the body because it involves the skin area supplied by a single nerve. Shingles is painful because the infection irritates or damages the affected nerve.<\/p>\n

Should I call my doctor if I have shingles symptoms? Is there a treatment for shingles?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you suspect you have shingles, call your doctor right away. There is an antiviral treatment for shingles. It can reduce the initial symptoms, but unfortunately, the antiviral medication does not prevent or treat the persistent pain that can occur with a shingles infection.<\/p>\n

If I have shingles, can I spread it to someone else?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

If you are around someone who has not been vaccinated for chickenpox and never had chickenpox as a child, that person could get chickenpox from your case of shingles.<\/p>\n

But an adult with shingles is not going to spread shingles to another adult who already has had chickenpox or who has been vaccinated for chickenpox.<\/p>\n

\u201cShingles doesn\u2019t come from outside the body, so you can\u2019t spread shingles if you have it. The infection comes from inside the body from the virus that remained there since childhood from chickenpox,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Who is at risk of getting shingles?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cShingles is especially common in older people,\u201d Levin said.<\/p>\n

Why is shingles common in older people?<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause as you age, your immunity tends to decline as well,\u201d Levin said. \u201cThat\u2019s what we call immune senescence. Immunity keeps the virus in check \u2014 until the immune system declines with age.<\/p>\n

\u201cNormally, the immunity you got back when you had chickenpox keeps the virus under wraps, but every now and then, it can break loose. Most of the time, we don\u2019t even know this is happening because our immune system squelches it. As people get older and their immune systems weaken, viruses like the one that causes shingles can wake up and do damage again,\u201d Levin said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnother situation where shingles is common is when you\u2019re immunocompromised, like someone getting chemotherapy for cancer. This also weakens the immune system so the virus can reactivate and keep growing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

When did you and your colleagues develop the first shingles vaccine?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Levin and other researchers started working on a shingles vaccine back in 1982.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe thought, \u2018Well, if the problem with shingles is lack of immunity in older people, why not boost the immunity and see if we can prevent shingles?\u2019\u201d Levin said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking with Dr. Adriana Weinberg<\/a>, an immunologist at the Anschutz Medical Campus, we showed this could be done by using a different formulation of the vaccine that was then being developed for chickenpox.\u201d<\/p>\n

Levin and Weinberg showed that this first shingles vaccine stimulated the type of immunity people needed for protection against shingles.<\/p>\n

After developing the vaccine, they and colleagues spent 10 years finding the correct dose and showing, in a large 5-year national trial, that it was both safe and effective.<\/p>\n

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved that vaccine in 1995. That\u2019s when doctors began to use the vaccine widely. The first version was called Zostavax, and it prevented millions of people from getting shingles.<\/p>\n

Over time, researchers and vaccine makers developed an even more effective type of shingles vaccine. That\u2019s the version of the vaccine that you\u2019ll receive today.<\/p>\n

The newest version of the shingles vaccine is called Shingrix.<\/p>\n

Levin said the new version \u201cis much better, and it lasts longer\u201d than the first version he and colleagues developed.<\/p>\n

Who should get the shingles vaccine?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Adults who are 50 and older should get the shingles vaccine, along with adults ages 19 and older who have compromised immune systems, according to CDC experts<\/a>. If you\u2019re not sure whether you should get the vaccine, check with your doctor.<\/p>\n

Is there anyone who shouldn\u2019t get the shingles vaccine?<\/strong><\/h2>\n

A small percentage of people shouldn\u2019t get the shingles vaccines, according to CDC experts. Those who should not get it include the following:<\/p>\n