Herpes Zoster
Authors: Mark R. Goldstein, Luca Mascitelli
Journal: Annals of Internal Medicine (2018)

Letters18 December 2018Herpes ZosterMark R. Goldstein, MD and Luca Mascitelli, MDMark R. Goldstein, MDNCH Physician Group, Naples, Florida (M.R.G.)Search for more papers by this author and Luca Mascitelli, MDCommando Brigata Alpina “Julia”/Multinational Land Force, Udine, Italy (L.M.)Search for more papers by this authorAuthor, Article, and Disclosure Informationhttps://doi.org/10.7326/L18-0557 SectionsAboutFull TextPDF ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail TO THE EDITOR:Schmader (1) notes that the incidence of herpes zoster (HZ) is increasing. The author discussed several risk factors for this condition, including advancing age, immunosuppression, chemotherapy, radiotherapy, steroid use, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, cancer, female sex, white race, a family history of HZ, and having varicella infection before 1 year of age. However, statin therapy—which could also represent a risk factor for HZ (2, 3) and has important implications in the geriatric population (3)—was not mentioned.In a large observational trial, statin users older than 70 years had a 39% higher risk for HZ than an age-matched group who ...References1. Schmader K. Herpes zoster. Ann Intern Med. 2018;169:ITC19-31. [PMID: 30083718]. doi:10.7326/AITC201808070 LinkGoogle Scholar2. Antoniou T, Zheng H, Singh S, Juurlink DN, Mamdani MM, Gomes T. Statins and the risk of herpes zoster: a population-based cohort study. Clin Infect Dis. 2014;58:350-6. [PMID: 24235264] doi:10.1093/cid/cit745 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar3. Kim MC, Yun SC, Lee SO, Choi SH, Kim YS, Woo JH, et al. Statins increase the risk of herpes zoster: a propensity score-matched analysis. PLoS One. 2018;13:e0198263. [PMID: 29902266] doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0198263 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar4. Zeiser R. Immune modulatory effects of statins. Immunology. 2018;154:69-75. [PMID: 29392731] doi:10.1111/imm.12902 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar5. Sabatine MS, Wiviott SD, Im K, Murphy SA, Giugliano RP. Efficacy and safety of further lowering of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol in patients starting with very low levels: a meta-analysis. JAMA Cardiol. 2018;3:823-8. [PMID: 30073316] doi:10.1001/jamacardio.2018.2258 CrossrefMedlineGoogle Scholar Author, Article, and Disclosure InformationAffiliations: NCH Physician Group, Naples, Florida (M.R.G.)Commando Brigata Alpina “Julia”/Multinational Land Force, Udine, Italy (L.M.)Disclosures: Disclosures can be viewed at www.acponline.org/authors/icmje/ConflictOfInterestForms.do?msNum=L18-0557. PreviousarticleNextarticle Advertisement FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsSee AlsoHerpes Zoster Kenneth Schmader Herpes Zoster Kenneth Schmader Metrics 18 December 2018Volume 169, Issue 12Page: 897KeywordsDisclosureElderlyGeriatricsHereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancerImmune responseImmunosuppressivesLow density lipoproteinMedical risk factorsRacial and ethnic issuesStatins ePublished: 18 December 2018 Issue Published: 18 December 2018 Copyright & PermissionsCopyright © 2018 by American College of Physicians. All Rights Reserved.PDF downloadLoading ...