Trading chickenpox for shingles?

New research suggests that the US government has unwittingly traded a typically mild childhood disease for a far more serious illness that affects adults. According to a case study conducted in California, the rate of shingles has increased dramatically since a 1995 governmental recommendation that all children receive the chickenpox vaccine. The research findings of Dr. Gary S. Goldman, published recently in the International Journal of Toxicology, support the theory that shingles, which is known to cause three times as many deaths and five times the number of hospitalizations as chickenpox, is naturally suppressed by occasional contact with chickenpox.

Dr. Goldman's findings corroborate other independent studies showing that the numbers of shingles cases in the US could continue to rise for 50 years. Of great concern is the fact that while death rates from chickenpox are very low [0.0023% death rate], any deaths prevented by vaccination will be offset by deaths from the increasing incidence of shingles.

Further, in a peer-reviewed article published in Vaccine, Goldman points out that during a 50-year time span there would be an estimated 14.6 million (42 percent) additional shingles cases among adults under 50 years of age, presenting society with an additional medical cost burden of $4.1 billion. This translates to $80 million annually, using an estimated mean healthcare-provider cost of $280 per shingles case.

Both chickenpox and shingles are caused by the same varicella-zoster virus (VZV). Following a chickenpox infection, the virus becomes dormant, but can reactivate later, in adulthood, as shingles. It has long been known that adults receive natural immune boosting from contact with children infected with chickenpox. This continued contact helps prevent the reactivation of the virus in the form of shingles. Goldman's research also indicates that the effectiveness of the chickenpox vaccine itself is dependent on natural boosting. As natural cases of chickenpox decline, so will the effectiveness of the vaccine.

Dr. Gary S. Goldman, "Universal Varicella Vaccination: Efficacy Trends and Effect on Herpes Zoster," International Journal of Toxicology 24, no. 4 (July-August 2005): 205-213.
Dr. Gary S. Goldman, "Cost-benefit Analysis of Universal Varicella Vaccination in the U.S. Taking into Account the Closely Related Herpeszoster Epidemiology," Vaccine 23, no. 25 (9 May 2005): 3349-3355.

COPYRIGHT 2005 Mothering Magazine, November-December Issue
COPYRIGHT 2005 Gale Group