Shingles vaccine linked to lower dementia risk in new study
A study reported on June 18 found that nursing home residents who received GSK’s Shingrix shingles vaccine were roughly 24% less likely to be diagnosed with dementia over the following four years than comparable residents who did not, STAT News reports . The finding adds to a growing body of research tying shingles vaccination to reduced cognitive decline.
The association is biologically plausible — reactivation of the varicella-zoster virus causes inflammation that may contribute to neurodegeneration, so suppressing it could be protective. But observational studies of this kind cannot fully rule out that healthier or better-cared-for people are both more likely to get vaccinated and less likely to develop dementia. Confirming cause and effect would require randomized trials, which are difficult to run for an outcome that unfolds over years.