Shingles — But Also RSV — Vaccination Associated With Lower Dementia Risk

A new report is adding to the growing body of evidence that vaccination against shingles may also curb the risk of dementia.

The authors of the study, published in npj Vaccines , say it may actually be the adjuvant system used to create the vaccine that provides the protective benefit.

Last year, corresponding author Paul J. Harrison, M.A., B.M.B.Ch., D.M., of the University of Oxford, and colleagues published data showing that the recombinant shingles vaccine lowered the risk of dementia. They also found that it had a larger impact than the live version of the vaccine. The live vaccine is no longer in use in many countries, including the United States, due to data showing its efficacy is inferior to the recombinant one.

Harrison and colleagues said the findings from last year’s