A systematic literature review of herpes zoster incidence worldwide

Abstract

We conducted a systematic review to characterize the incidence rate of herpes zoster (HZ) in the general population, specifically in individuals ≥50 years of age. A total of 69 publications were included in the review. We found a cumulative incidence of HZ ranging from 2.9–19.5 cases per 1,000 population and an incidence rate of HZ ranging from 5.23–10.9 cases per 1,000 person-years. The cumulative incidence (3.22–11.2 versus 2.44–8.0 cases per 1,000 population) and incidence rates (6.05–12.8 versus 4.30–8.5 cases per 1,000 person-years) were higher in females than males. Studies revealed a trend of increasing incidence of HZ with increasing age and over time. Variations in incidence estimates can be attributed to the various study designs, case ascertainments, age distributions of the population and year of the study. HZ is associated with a substantial disease burden and is expected to increase due to population aging.

Herpes zoster after COVID vaccination

“…Arora et al, 2021 , Furer et al, 2021 , Gershon et al, 2015 , Kamphuis et al, 2006 , Ku et al, 2016 , Márcia et al, 2020 , Marra et al, 2020 , Marzano et al, 2020 , Mulligan et al, 2020 , Nofal et al, 2020 , van Oorschot et al, 2021 , Bhardwaj et al, 2021 , Pona et al, 2020 , Qin et al, 2020 , Rodríguez-Jiménez et al, 2021 , Saati et al, 2020 , Sahin et al, 2020 , Tartari et al, 2020 , Tessas and Kluger, 2021 , Wang et al, 2020 , Wang et al, 2020 , Bostan and Yalici-Armagan, 2021 , Wei et al, 2017 , Wang et al, 2020 , Brambilla et al, 2020 , Dayan and Peleg, 2017 , Eid et al, 2021 , Elsaie et al, 2020 , Ferreira et al, 2020 , Folegatti et al, 2020 …”

Meta-Regression of Herpes Zoster Incidence Worldwide

“…A previous systematic literature review (SLR) conducted in 2014 provided a comprehensive overview of HZ as a significant global health burden [ 6 ] and demonstrated substantial heterogeneity across studies. While age, gender, ethnicity and comorbidities are well-known risk factors that may impact incident rates for HZ [ 7 ], other factors such as study design (e.g., prospective versus retrospective), case ascertainment (International Classification of Diseases [ICD] versus prescribed therapeutic codes), study population (e.g., age distribution, year(s) of study, setting [(country or region]) and sample size may also have an impact on the results of a study [ 8 – 10 ]. Consequently, generalizability and comparability of study results likely require consideration of other factors that potentially influence outcomes.…”

“…In this study, we performed a SLR to provide a comprehensive evidence base on the worldwide incidence of HZ, focusing on individuals ≥ 50 years old. The results of the SLR are presented elsewhere [ 8 ]. In this manuscript, we explore the relationship between study covariates and the incidence of HZ.…”

An Analysis of Spontaneously Reported Data of Vesicular and Bullous Cutaneous Eruptions Occurring Following Vaccination with the Adjuvanted Recombinant Zoster Vaccine

“…After infection, VZV remains dormant in sensory nerve ganglia, from where it may reactivate to cause herpes zoster (HZ; shingles) [2]. The incidence of HZ has been estimated to range between 5.2 and 10.9 cases per 1000 person-years in those aged ≥ 50 years [3]. Generally, the incidence increases with age [3][4][5][6], which is primarily attributed to an age-related decline in immunity (immune senescence) and a higher likelihood of the presence of immunosuppressive conditions [5].…”

“…The incidence of HZ has been estimated to range between 5.2 and 10.9 cases per 1000 person-years in those aged ≥ 50 years [3]. Generally, the incidence increases with age [3][4][5][6], which is primarily attributed to an age-related decline in immunity (immune senescence) and a higher likelihood of the presence of immunosuppressive conditions [5]. HZ is characterised by a painful, localised rash and can be associated with serious complications of the nervous system such as ophthalmic HZ and post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) [2,[7][8][9].…”