"It turns out that the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine not only prevents shingles but also lowers the risk of death from cardiovascular diseases such as myocardial infarction and stroke. This suggests that vaccines can reduce the body's inflammatory burden and lower the risk of diseases in multiple organs."
Yeon Dong-gun, a professor at the Department of Digital Health, School of Medicine, Kyunghee University (associate director of the Digital Health Center at Kyung Hee University Medical Center), said this during an interview at his lab on the afternoon of 26th. Professor Yeon last month presented a research paper on "Live attenuated herpes zoster vaccination and cardiovascular outcomes" at the European Society of Cardiology.
Yeon's team conducted a longitudinal study on the association between live attenuated herpes zoster vaccination and the risk of various cardiovascular diseases, using big data from 2.2 million adults in Korea aged 50 and older held by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency, the National Health Insurance Service, and the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service (HIRA). Broadly, vaccines are divided into inactivated vaccines, made by culturing viruses or bacteria and then killing them with heat or chemicals, and live attenuated vaccines, made by nearly eliminating the virulence of live viruses or bacteria.
Shingles occurs when the varicella-zoster virus (VZV), which entered the body in childhood and lay dormant, reactivates when the immune system is compromised. Older adults whose immune cell function has declined or people with immunocompromising conditions are at higher risk. When infected with shingles, not only is the pain severe, but serious complications such as hearing loss and blindness can occur.
Professor Yeon said, "We compiled data on about 2.2 million people to implement a virtualized clinical trial, that is, a big-data clinical trial that resembles the real world," adding, "This is the world's first study to prove over a long-term follow-up that vaccines can alleviate cardiovascular disease beyond preventing infectious diseases." He said, "It took three years just to merge the data."
A virtualized clinical trial tracks the effectiveness and safety of a specific drug within a population's medical data. Instead of an actual clinical trial, it compares the health status of people who received the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine with others using the records of care and test results they have received at various medical institutions over time.
As a result, people who received live attenuated herpes zoster vaccines, including SK bioscience's SKYZoster, had about a 23% lower risk of myocardial infarction, stroke, and cardiovascular death than others. SKYZoster received domestic approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety in Sep. 2017.
Professor Yeon said, "The preventive effect was greatest in years 2 to 3 and then maintained gradually, with protection lasting up to eight years." He explained, "The herpes zoster virus lies hidden in the ganglia and, upon reactivation, triggers systemic inflammation," adding, "The live attenuated vaccine appears to reduce this inflammatory burden in the body, contributing to a lower risk of various organ diseases beyond preventing shingles."
Using the same research approach, Professor Yeon recently published in domestic and international journals findings that live attenuated herpes zoster vaccination reduces hepatobiliary diseases and helps prevent shingles and its complications in patients with type 2 diabetes.
Overseas, studies have also found that the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine may help prevent dementia. In Apr., a Stanford University team in the United States reported in the international journal "Nature" that receiving the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine reduces the risk of developing dementia. According to the paper, an analysis of the health records of more than 280,000 people aged 71 to 88 showed that those who received the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine had about a 20% lower risk of developing Alzheimer's over seven years. Professor Yeon said he is also conducting research on dementia and the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine.
Then when is the best time to get the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine? Professor Yeon said, "Considering the various preventive effects, I believe it is more effective to get vaccinated somewhat earlier than the current standard of age 60," adding, "If possible, it's good to start in your 50s."
Recently, some have voiced distrust of vaccines. Professor Yeon said, "There are cases where some researchers or particular groups sensationally interpret parts of papers, amplifying controversy over side effects or excessively inflating risks, but in reality the benefits of vaccines are far greater." He said, "If the anti-vaccine trend continues, the long-term social expense will grow," adding, "Accurate information dissemination and public outreach are important."
Professor Yeon emphasized, "Now that the various preventive effects of the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine have been confirmed, we need to expand shingles vaccination programs through local government budgets, and in the long term, I believe it should be included in the National Immunization Program (NIP)," adding, "Vaccination is an investment that reduces national medical expenses beyond individual health."
References
European Heart Journal (2025), DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf230
Clinical Microbiology and Infection (2025), DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmi.2025.05.003
KJIM (2025), DOI: https://doi.org/10.3904/kjim.2025.171