| ▲ A study found that those with a history of shingles had a higher incidence of cardiovascular disease. (Photo = DB) |
[메디컬투데이=한지혁 기자] Studies have shown that patients with a history of shingles have a higher incidence of cardiovascular disease.
A study investigating the association between shingles and cardiovascular disease was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Recently, researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston conducted a study to determine the effect of shingles on cardiovascular diseases such as stroke and coronary heart disease.
They analyzed data from 205,030 participants in all three studies, but those with a previous history of stroke or coronary artery disease were excluded from the study.
Participants reported symptoms of shingles and coronary artery disease in a biennial questionnaire. When checked by cross-validation by medical professionals, these self-reports were found to be highly accurate.
As a result of the analysis, it was found that those who experienced shingles were up to 38% more likely to develop stroke symptoms than those who did not. The risk of developing coronary heart disease was also increased by 25%.
Similar to previous studies, this study also failed to prove a causal relationship between shingles and cardiovascular disease. Experts have put forward various theories regarding the link between the two diseases.
For one example, the zoster virus is known to be the only virus capable of replicating in large and small arteries. When angiopathy is caused by a virus, blood coagulation is induced due to damage to the arterial wall and endothelial dysfunction, which can cause cardiovascular disease.
Shingles is characterized by a painful rash that lasts for 2 to 4 weeks, and can occur when the immune system does not effectively suppress the varicella virus dormant in the ganglion.
Currently, most patients with shingles are over the age of 50 who had chickenpox as a child, and in the case of young people, most of them have received the chickenpox vaccine, so they do not have the chickenpox virus dormant in their bodies.
Given the current situation in which the number of patients with shingles is increasing due to the aging population and the availability of vaccines, the shingles vaccine can be an effective means to reduce the burden of the disease and reduce the risk of subsequent cardiovascular complications.
The U.S. health authorities recommend that all people over the age of 50 get the shingles vaccine, except for those who have had adverse reactions to previous vaccines. In addition, if shingles has already occurred, appropriate antiviral treatment within 72 hours can help relieve symptoms.
Medical Today Reporter Han Ji-hyeok ([email protected])
[저작권자ⓒ 메디컬투데이. 무단전재-재배포 금지]
