People 50 and older should get the new shingles vaccine, Shingrix

Kenneth Patchen · « **on:** 14 Jun 2018, 09:43 am »

Even people who got the old shingles vaccine, Zostavax, are being urged to get the new, and better, Shingrix vaccine.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/09/well/why-you-should-get-the-new-shingles-vaccine.html?smprod=nytcore-ipad&smid=nytcore-ipad-share

“People 50 and older should get the new shingles vaccine whether or not they remember having had chickenpox as a child, experts say. I got the new vaccine. Here’s how it compares to its predecessor Zostavax, which over all reduces the risk of shingles by 51 percent and of PHN by 67 percent. According to the C.D.C., Shingrix can protect 97 percent of people in their 50s and 60s and 91 percent of those in their 70s and 80s. It also reduces the risk of PHN by 86 percent, and it appears to be longer lasting than Zostavax, which starts to lose its protection after three years.
What makes Shingrix so much better is the inclusion of a substance called an adjuvant that boosts the body’s immune response to the vaccine. Another difference is that Zostavax contains a live, weakened virus, making it unsuitable for people with poor immunity, whereas Shingrix contains a nonliving virus particle and may eventually be approved for those with compromised immunity, who are especially susceptible to a severe case of shingles.
I should tell you that the new vaccine is not exactly a walk in the park. The shot itself is painful and can cause a sore arm for a day or two. Some people develop immune-related side effects like headache, fever or an upset stomach that last less than three days, according to the manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline. My only reaction beyond local soreness was an acid stomach for a day or two.”

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Wind Chaser · « **Reply #1 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 10:16 am »

Quote from: Kenneth Patchen on 14 Jun 2018, 09:43 am

I should tell you that the new vaccine is not exactly a walk in the park. The shot itself is painful and can cause a sore arm for a day or two. Some people develop immune-related side effects like headache, fever or an upset stomach that last less than three days, according to the manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline.

Those side effects are nothing compared to the brutal onslaught of pain you will feel if you get shingles. I got them in the mouth which is very hard to diagnose.

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #2 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 11:48 am »

My second wife(ex) was a doc, she refused to take the flu vaccine.
In my country many people vaccinated with the H1N1 vaccine began to be diagnosed with HIV positive, so the local press says it is ''false'' positive, there is other more dramatic cases.
https://www.google.com.br/search?dcr=0&source=hp&ei=olIiW4WWPMW6wASyiquICw&q=vacina+falso+positivo&oq=vacina+falso+&gs_l=psy-ab.1.0.0i22i30k1l9.2313.22885.0.38113.13.13.0.0.0.0.171.1306.0j10.10.0..2..0...1..64.psy-ab..3.10.1304...0j0i131k1j0i10k1.0.jOqmeKAFPA8

timind · « **Reply #3 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 12:04 pm »

My brother has shingles which flare up every so often. Looks painful as hell. I got the vaccine a couple years ago.

ctviggen · « **Reply #4 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 01:08 pm »

What to do about this? My problem is I think drug manufacturers are untrustworthy.

After reading this, I can't trust them:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1846198844/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

And this book is so depressing, I couldn't finish it. And unfortunately, the drug manufacturers own the CDC, AHA, and doctors in general. Is this a useful vaccine? Maybe, maybe not.

Wind Chaser · « **Reply #5 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 01:30 pm »

Quote from: ctviggen on 14 Jun 2018, 01:08 pm

What to do about this?

Well I can say with great certainty if I had a gun, I'd be very tempted to shoot myself in the head. I got them in the mouth. The pain I am experiencing is excruciating. It's like the toothache from hell, accept it isn't a toothache. The dentist assured me that pulling all the teeth out in that area would provide zero pain relief. And now the opiates (7 mg Dilaudid - I was proscribed 2mg) I'm taking give me 4 hours of pain relief at best with plenty of undesirable side effects as a bonus. Can't sleep and that's that. The pain continues to intensify.

If I could go back, I'd take vaccine without a second thought. According to the CDC, "Almost 1 out of 3 people in the United States will develop shingles during their lifetime."

Kenneth Patchen · « **Reply #6 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 02:15 pm »

I’ve already had Zostavax but I’ll defintely get the new vaccine, after talking with my doc whose opinions I respect. My father had shingles in his 80s and it was extremely painful and kept him bedridden and in agony during outbreaks.

Windchaser, my sincere sympathies, that sounds horrible. Can you talk with another healthcare professional about your situation? Dilaudid can easily take control of your life. I speak from experience. But as described your pain level is beyond anything I’ve experienced. Please take care and continue to keep us posted as to how you’re doing.

Johnny2Bad · « **Reply #7 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 03:09 pm »

I never contracted ChickenPox (or any other childhood diseases). My younger sister had them all, though. I'm not anti-vaccine but without the pre-conditon I don't expect to see shingles in my lifetime.

I do take Flu shots, they are a covered drug / procedure in my province, you can usually just pop into any Pharmacy and get one at your convenience, but they also have public clinics in the fall and of course your doctor can give you one.

woodsyi · « **Reply #8 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 03:23 pm »

When I was in for a regular check up a couple of months ago, I asked my doctor about the new shingles vaccine. He said that there are no reports yet of side effects and effectiveness in real world situations because it's so new. He recommended waiting a while to see how it goes before getting it. I agreed.

I.Greyhound Fan · « **Reply #9 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 03:39 pm »

Being a doctor, I see shingles 3-4 times per month. It is very painful for most people. But the big issue with Shingles is that you can get the extremely painful Post Herpetic Neuralgia (Shingles which is the same virus as chickenpox is a herpes virus). Post Herpetic Neuralgia (PHN) is where you end up with chronic nerve pain when the flare up of shingles resolves. It is very debilitating and very difficult to treat. Just imagine chronic daily sharp, stabbing, burning and electric like pain for the rest of your life. The new vaccine is not a sham and it works.

Regarding the Flu vaccine, it does work but its effectiveness varies from 15% to about 60% from year to year. I see about 300 patients with influenza a year. Most people that I saw with the Flu who have had the vaccine are not nearly as ill as those that did not. In addition, of the 160 or so children that died from the Flu this year, 85% of them did not receive the vaccine. In 31 years as a physician, I have only had the flu once and that was back in 1993 when I did not get the flu vaccine.

I am not going to get into a heated discussion about drug companies and the CDC, NIH and physicians, but we are not owned or in bed with the drug companies. We get no kick backs or incentives for using vaccines or drugs. I have worked with hundreds of physicians and my brother who was a physician and not one took kick backs or were even offered them. Hell, if I was getting kick backs, I would have retired 20 years ago as would all of my physician friends.

Best Regards,

Larry

Photon46 · « **Reply #10 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 04:01 pm »

I just had my yearly "wellness visit" and asked my primary care physician about Shingrix. His response was the similar to Woodsyi's physician: I don't jump on a new vaccine bandwagon until it's been in general population use for at least a year and then I'll advise. We've had a few friends have shingles flareups and it wasn't any fun at all. My wife had an attack start a few years ago and we knew what was probably happening so we had our physician prescribe an anti-viral. That nipped it in the bud in short order with no lasting after effects thankfully.

glynnw · « **Reply #11 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 04:54 pm »

I have had PHN for 3 years now after shingles and it can be very painful. None of the conventional treatments have worked and, at 71 years, I face quite a few years of pain in the future (hopefully I live a long life) fighting it with various pain meds. The odds of every single one of us getting PHN is greater than 10%, so you're nuts not to seek out this new vaccine.

Wind Chaser · « **Reply #12 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 06:49 pm »

I'm going to see another doctor in 2.5 hours as my primary care physician is away this week. What kind of a pain killer should I ask for?

glynnw · « **Reply #13 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 07:47 pm »

I have been taking 10 mg hydrocodone once or twice a day. Barely helps, but better than aspirin or ibuprofen.

Wind Chaser · « **Reply #14 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 07:59 pm »

Yeah I know what you mean about aspirin and ibuprofen. Even T3s do nothing for this pain. It has subsided and tends to be moderate during the day, but if I lie down it's off the charts; that's why I've been pretty much up around the clock for the past 11 days. I'm lucky if I can get a few hours here and there.

PDR · « **Reply #15 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 11:17 pm »

Doctor appointment next week......you guyz have convinced me.

Wind Chaser.....good luck, I feel for you.....couldnt imagine that kinda pain.

Saturn94 · « **Reply #16 on:** 14 Jun 2018, 11:33 pm »

I just had a shingles vaccine last December (the old one). I wish I had known there was a new, more effective vaccine available at the time! I guess I’ll be asking my doctor about getting the new one.

My arm hurt pretty bad for a week after the last vaccine, but I guess that’s better than getting shingles!

JeffB · « **Reply #17 on:** 15 Jun 2018, 12:00 am »

One thing I have never seen an answer to.
I have never had chicken pox, but as an adult I did get the chicken pox vaccine which is a live attenuated virus.
Now I wonder if that vaccine makes it possible for me to get shingles.

Wind Chaser · « **Reply #18 on:** 15 Jun 2018, 12:42 am »

Thanks PDR, getting the vaccine is a very smart thing to do. The pain from the shot is nothing compared to the pain of the disease. Make sure you get the most upto date vaccine.

Just got back from the doctors with another round meds. 9 different prescriptions over the last 12 days, not including 4 different over the counter meds, and home remedies like colloidal silver, ACV, warm salt water etc.

I might also suggest taking a look at your diet. Weak immunity opens the door for this and a whole host of other ailments. Too much sugar will sabatoge the immune system. Eat well, exercise and drink lots of water. Coffee, tea, juice etc don’t count.

I.Greyhound Fan · « **Reply #19 on:** 15 Jun 2018, 02:46 am »

Quote from: JeffB on 15 Jun 2018, 12:00 am

One thing I have never seen an answer to.
I have never had chicken pox, but as an adult I did get the chicken pox vaccine which is a live attenuated virus.
Now I wonder if that vaccine makes it possible for me to get shingles.

No Jeff, getting the live CP vaccine does not make you prone to shingles. You can still get shingles the old fashion way, by coming into contact with someone that has chickenpox or shingles.

You are one person who should get the vaccine, never having CP. You can still get CP as an adult and are more at riskof having Chicken Pox viral pneumonia and death, although it is rare.