Author Topic: New shingles vaccine  (Read 186 times)

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Offline agate

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New shingles vaccine
« on: September 18, 2017, 09:39:46 am »
If you've already received Zostavax, the shingles vaccine, should you be revaccinated with the new improved shingles vaccine that is about to become available?

This article from NEJM Journal Watch (September 18, 2017) doesn't answer this question, but it's dealing with the GlaxoSmithKline version of the new vaccine:

https://blogs.jwatch.org/hiv-id-observations/index.php/inactivated-zoster-vaccine-soon-to-be-approved-should-patients-wait/2017/09/17/

According to this article in FiercePharma (June 22, 2017), a rival version of the new herpes zoster (shingles) vaccine is coming from Merck, and people who have previously received Zostavax can be revaccinated with it:

"With GlaxoSmithKline eager for marketing approval,
 Shingrix passes revaccination test"


MS Speaks--online for 17 years

SPMS, diagnosed 1980. Avonex 2001-2004. Copaxone 2007-2010. Glatopa (glatiramer acetate 40mg 3 times/week) since 12/16/20.

Offline agate

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Re: New shingles vaccine
« Reply #1 on: January 01, 2018, 04:58:08 pm »




Quote
New Shingles Vaccine Is Here!


Abigail Zuger, MD

Its arrival should be good news for immunocompromised and older patients.

FDA drug approvals seldom are newsworthy, but the October 2017 approval of a new herpes zoster vaccine generated real buzz.... Long awaited by both patients and doctors, the new “Shingrix” vaccine seems likely to remedy some of the major deficiencies of its predecessor, “Zostavax.”

Unlike Zostavax, which is a live attenuated vaccine, Shingrix consists of a recombinant zoster glycoprotein along with a potent adjuvant. Thus, it is safe for immunocompromised people who might risk disseminated zoster from a live vaccine. In addition, although no head-to-head trials have been performed, the new vaccine's efficacy seems to be substantially better than that of its predecessor.


In one trial that involved more than 15,000 patients (age, ≥50), the new vaccine's efficacy for preventing zoster exceeded 95%....
In a companion trial that involved almost 14,000 patients (age, ≥70), efficacy was about 90%, with no diminution of efficacy in those older than 80. In contrast, published efficacy of the live attenuated preparations has been 50% to 70%, with lower rates in older recipients....

The new vaccine does have some downsides, and some questions still need to be answered. A booster dose is required at 2 months, and both injections commonly elicit substantial local reactions. The vaccine's efficacy in specific forms of immunocompromise still is unknown, as is its efficacy in preventing recurrent zoster after a prior episode. The older vaccine did not confer long-term immunity: Most recipients lost protection by 10 years after a dose....
The new vaccine appears to work well in those already vaccinated with the old one and might be a good choice for reimmunizing these patients, although the duration of protection from the new vaccine itself is not yet known.

The low population uptake of Zostavax has been of substantial concern to both the manufacturer and public health experts: In 2013 (almost a decade after its approval) only about 30% of eligible patients had received it....
Shingrix might be easier to store and administer, as it does not require refrigeration, but whether its two-dose requirement will limit effective protection out of a research setting remains to be seen.



This vaccine doesn't sound easy but it sounds as if it's a good idea for many of us to get even if we've already had the Zostavax vaccine.
« Last Edit: May 25, 2018, 04:28:52 pm by agate »
MS Speaks--online for 17 years

SPMS, diagnosed 1980. Avonex 2001-2004. Copaxone 2007-2010. Glatopa (glatiramer acetate 40mg 3 times/week) since 12/16/20.

Offline agate

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Some doctors aren't administering the new herpes zoster (shingles) vaccine correctly, it seems. From
NEJM Journal Watch, May 25, 2018--"After Clinician Errors, CDC Reminds Providers of Proper Zoster Vaccine Administration":


https://www.jwatch.org/fw114210/2018/05/25/after-clinician-errors-cdc-reminds-providers-proper?query=pfwTOC&jwd=000100983645&jspc=
MS Speaks--online for 17 years

SPMS, diagnosed 1980. Avonex 2001-2004. Copaxone 2007-2010. Glatopa (glatiramer acetate 40mg 3 times/week) since 12/16/20.

 

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