Research Suggests Shingles Vaccine Protects Against Heart Attack and Stroke
The shingles vaccination is up to 97% effective in preventing herpes zoster, a disorder that inflames nerves and causes painful rashes. According to a new meta-study, it may also aid in improving cardiovascular health significantly.
The meta-study, conducted by Charles Williams of the biopharmaceutical research company GSK, examined 19 prior studies on health measures and the vaccine to reach this result. The shingles vaccine was found to reduce the risk of cardiac events by 16% in persons over 50 and 18% in adults aged 18-50.
The findings will be presented on Saturday, August 30, 2025, at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Madrid.
Previously, the shingles vaccination has demonstrated health advantages in addition to disease prevention. Research published in April of this year, for example, found that the vaccine reduced the risk of dementia by 20%. A different observational research published in May found that people who received the Zostavax shingles vaccine had a 26% decreased chance of dying from heart disease.
Shingles, on the other hand, has previously been associated with cardiovascular events. According to one study, the condition caused the growth of sac-like structures containing blood-clotting proteins, increasing the risk of stroke. Another study found that persons with the condition were up to 30% more likely to have a cardiovascular event in the years that followed.
So the discovery that a vaccine against the disorder is associated with greater cardiovascular health makes logical sense and is consistent with past research. Having said that, even the researcher warns of several flaws in his findings and begs for more in-depth research.
"While our findings are encouraging, there are some limitations to the available data that we studied," Williams said. "Almost all of the evidence comes from observational studies, which are biased and should not be used to establish causality. All of the studies included in the meta-analysis were primarily concerned with the use of the herpes zoster vaccination to prevent shingles in the general population, which may limit the potential to generalise this research to persons who are more likely to have cardiovascular events. This highlights the need for additional research in this area.
The meta-study, conducted by Charles Williams of the biopharmaceutical research company GSK, examined 19 prior studies on health measures and the vaccine to reach this result. The shingles vaccine was found to reduce the risk of cardiac events by 16% in persons over 50 and 18% in adults aged 18-50.
The findings will be presented on Saturday, August 30, 2025, at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Madrid.
Previously, the shingles vaccination has demonstrated health advantages in addition to disease prevention. Research published in April of this year, for example, found that the vaccine reduced the risk of dementia by 20%. A different observational research published in May found that people who received the Zostavax shingles vaccine had a 26% decreased chance of dying from heart disease.
Shingles, on the other hand, has previously been associated with cardiovascular events. According to one study, the condition caused the growth of sac-like structures containing blood-clotting proteins, increasing the risk of stroke. Another study found that persons with the condition were up to 30% more likely to have a cardiovascular event in the years that followed.
So the discovery that a vaccine against the disorder is associated with greater cardiovascular health makes logical sense and is consistent with past research. Having said that, even the researcher warns of several flaws in his findings and begs for more in-depth research.
"While our findings are encouraging, there are some limitations to the available data that we studied," Williams said. "Almost all of the evidence comes from observational studies, which are biased and should not be used to establish causality. All of the studies included in the meta-analysis were primarily concerned with the use of the herpes zoster vaccination to prevent shingles in the general population, which may limit the potential to generalise this research to persons who are more likely to have cardiovascular events. This highlights the need for additional research in this area.