Shingles Can Increase Stroke Risk. Getting the Vaccine Can Reduce It

A U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study to be presented at the American Stroke Association's International Stroke Conference 2020 found shingles increases a person's risk of stroke, which can be reduced in people over 50 years old by taking a vaccine, reports Healthline . Participants who received the vaccine Zostavax cut the risk of both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke, with those 66 to 79 years old receiving the strongest protection. Zostavax can prevent about 50 percent of shingles cases. However, effectiveness declines with age, from 64 percent among those 60 to 69 to about 41 percent for those 70 to 79 to roughly 18 percent for those 80 and older. The vaccine reduced the risk of stroke by nearly 20 percent in people younger than 80 and by about 10 percent in those older than 80. Getting the vaccine generally lowered the risk of stroke by about 16 percent, including reducing the risk of ischemic stroke by about 18 percent and the risk of hemorrhagic stroke by approximately 12 percent.