Overview

• The GSK-led review, presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Madrid, pooled nine studies from a 19-study systematic search.
• Vaccination was associated with about an 18% lower risk of cardiovascular events in adults 18 and older and 16% lower in those 50 and older, with absolute reductions of roughly 1.2 to 2.2 events per 1,000 person-years.
• Eight of the nine pooled studies were observational and one was a pooled Phase III safety analysis not powered for heart outcomes, so causality is not established.
• Researchers note biological plausibility given prior evidence that shingles reactivation can inflame blood vessels and transiently raise stroke and heart attack risk.
• NHS England says about 300,000 more immunocompromised adults will become eligible for the shingles vaccine from 1 September.