ObjectivesIn Canada, incidences of herpes zoster (HZ) and postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) are increasing, posing a significant burden on the healthcare system. This study aimed to determine the public health impact and cost effectiveness of an adjuvanted recombinant zoster vaccine (RZV) compared to no vaccination and to the live attenuated vaccine (ZVL) in Canadians aged 60 years and older.MethodsA multi-cohort Markov model has been adapted to the Canadian context using recent demographic and epidemiologic data. Simulations consisted of age-cohorts annually transitioning between health states. Health outcomes and costs were discounted at 1.5% per year. The perspective of the Canadian healthcare payer was adopted. A coverage of 80% for the first RZV and ZVL dose and a compliance of 75% for the second RZV dose were assumed.ResultsRZV was estimated to be cost effective compared with no vaccination with an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of $28,360 (Canadian dollars) per quality-adjusted life-year (QALY) in persons aged ≥ 60 years, avoiding 554,504 HZ and 166,196 PHN cases. Compared with ZVL, RZV accrued more QALYs through the remaining lifetime and an increase in costs of approximately $50 million resulting in an average ICER of $2396. Results were robust under deterministic and probabilistic sensitivity analyses. HZ incidence rate and persistence of vaccine efficacy had the largest impact on cost effectiveness.ConclusionsThe cost-utility analysis suggested that RZV would be cost effective in the Canadian population compared with no vaccination and vaccination with ZVL at a willingness-to-pay threshold of $50,000.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1007/s40258-019-00491-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background Case reports have described herpes zoster (HZ) in patients with COVID-19. However, this constitutes low-quality evidence for an association. We therefore performed a retrospective cohort study to assess the risk of developing HZ following a COVID-19 diagnosis. Methods We compared the HZ incidence in ≥50-year-olds diagnosed with COVID-19 versus those never diagnosed with COVID-19. We used data from the US MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters and Medicare Supplemental (3/2020-2/2021) and Optum Clinformatics Data Mart (3-12/2020) databases. Individuals with COVID-19 were exact-matched 1:4 to those without COVID-19 by age, sex, presence of HZ risk factors and health-care cost level. Adjusted incidence rate ratios (aIRRs) were estimated by Poisson regression. Results 394,677 individuals ≥50 years old with COVID-19 were matched with 1,577,346 individuals without COVID-19. Mean follow-up time after COVID-19 diagnosis and baseline characteristics were balanced between cohorts. Individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 had a 15% higher HZ risk than those without COVID-19 (aIRR: 1.15, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.07-1.24; p<0.001). The increased HZ risk was more pronounced (21%) following COVID-19 hospitalization (aIRR: 1.21, 95%CI: 1.03-1.41; p=0.02). Conclusions We found that COVID-19 diagnosis in ≥50-year-olds was associated with a significantly increased risk of developing HZ, highlighting the relevance of maintaining HZ vaccination.

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Introduction:The adjuvanted recombinant zoster vaccine (RZV) is currently licensed in over 30 countries for the prevention of herpes zoster (HZ) in adults aged ≥50 years. We conducted a review of available national guidelines or recommendations on RZV use to identify the similarities and differences and highlight any potential gaps. Areas covered: National recommendations from ten countries (Austria, Canada,

Background Some vaccines elicit non-specific immune responses that may protect against heterologous infections. We evaluated the association between recombinant adjuvanted zoster vaccine (RZV) and COVID-19 outcomes at Kaiser Permanente Southern California. Methods In a cohort design, adults aged ≥50 years who received ≥1 RZV dose before 3/1/2020 were matched 1:2 to unvaccinated individuals and followed until 12/31/2020. Adjusted hazard ratios (aHR) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for COVID-19 outcomes were estimated using Cox proportional hazards regression. In a test-negative design, cases had a positive SARS-CoV-2 test and controls had only negative tests, during 3/1/2020-12/31/2020. Adjusted odds ratios (aOR) and 95% CIs for RZV receipt were estimated using logistic regression. Results In the cohort design, 149,244 RZV recipients were matched to 298,488 unvaccinated individuals. The aHRs (95% CI) for COVID-19 diagnosis and hospitalization were 0.84 (0.81-0.87) and 0.68 (0.64-0.74), respectively. In the test-negative design, 8.4% of 75,726 test-positive cases and 13.1% of 340,898 test-negative controls had received ≥1 RZV dose. The aOR (95% CI) was 0.84 (0.81-0.86). Conclusion RZV vaccination was associated with a 16% lower risk of COVID-19 diagnosis and 32% lower risk of hospitalization. Further study of vaccine-induced non-specific immunity for potential attenuation of future pandemics is warranted.