Can You Get A Shingles Shot And Tetanus Vaccine At The Same Time
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Many vaccines are fine to be taken together. You will be told when you ask for your shots to be ordered, whether these particular shots are safe to be taken at the same time.Best,
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What Are The Main Causes Of Shingles
If you are currently experiencing a shingles outbreak, its natural to question and want to know what caused it.
Besides the herpes zoster virus being reactivated in your system, other more complicated, less well-known triggers for the virus include:
- the decline in your immune systems response, a natural part of aging
- procedures, such as organ transplants, that require the use of immunosuppressant medication
- autoimmune conditions, such as Crohns disease, lupus, and rheumatoid arthritis
- immunosuppressant treatments, such as chemotherapy, corticosteroids, and anti-inflammatory medications
Whether you suspect that you have shingles, COVID-19, or both, seek medical attention immediately if you notice one or more of the following:
- a temperature of 103°F or higher
- difficulty breathing
- skin or lips that are turning pale or bluish
- persistent pain or pressure in your chest
- confusion or feeling disoriented
- a rash near your eye
If you have a compromised immune system, are pregnant, or are over age 65 years, see a doctor right away if you suspect you have COVID-19 orshingles regardless of your specific symptoms.
Shingles is typically treated with antiviral medication. The earlier you get a confirmed diagnosis, the more effective the medication will be at managing your symptoms.
Acyclovir, valacyclovir, and famciclovir are antiviral medications that may be prescribed to treat a shingles outbreak.
Other treatments for shingles include:
What Is The Brand Name Of The Shingles Vaccine
There are 2 shingles vaccines used in the UK:
- Zostavax, a live vaccine given as 1 dose
- Shingrix, a non-live vaccine given as 2 doses, 2 months apart
Most people will have the Zostavax vaccine. The Shingrix vaccine is recommended if Zostavax is not suitable for you, for example if you have a condition that affects your immune system.
You can read more about the shingles vaccines in the patient information leaflets:
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Will There Be Any Side Effects From The Shingles Vaccination
There are 2 shingles vaccines: Zostavax and Shingrix .
With both vaccines it’s quite common to get redness and discomfort at the vaccination site, headaches and fatigue, but these side effects should not last more than a few days. See a GP if you have side effects that last longer than a few days, or if you develop a rash after having the shingles vaccination.
Read more about the shingles vaccine side effects.
What The Research Says
What we do know is that when your immune system is compromised or distracted fighting off another virus, it tends to give the herpes zoster virus a chance to reactivate.
Past research has established that immune-suppressing medications like chemotherapy and corticosteroids as well as health conditions that attack your immune system like Crohns disease, HIV, and lupus increase your risk for a shingles outbreak.
Researchers are currently trying to understand whether COVID-19 may do the same thing.
Preliminary data suggests that this could be the case, but we do not know yet.
A small 2021 study involving 491 vaccinated people in Israel showed that six participants experienced shingles for the first time after getting their first dose of COVID-19 vaccine. All six individuals had pre-existing conditions that lowered their natural immune response, and all six fully recovered after developing shingles.
This study prompted researchers to advocate for more studies on COVID-19 vaccines as possible triggers for the shingles virus.
Data gathered in Brazil also showed an increase of 10.7 cases of shingles per million inhabitants during the time of the pandemic.
Its impossible to know exactly how and to what extent the effect of increased stress of the pandemic and other factors played into these numbers increasing during that span of time. Stress has long been suspected to be a possible factor in developing shingles.
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Herpes Zoster Vaccine: Canadian Immunization Guide
For health professionals
Last complete revision:
July 2018 This chapter was revised to reflect NACI’s Updated Recommendations on the Use of Herpes Zoster Vaccines. Most sections were revised to include information and practice recommendations for the new recombinant zoster vaccine which is now available in Canada. Changes include:
- Recommendations for use in different populations.
- Contraindications and precautions.
- Administration of the HZ vaccines: Table 1 was added to summarize key information.
- Considerations on the efficacy, effectiveness and immunogenicity of HZ vaccines: Table 2 was added to summarize key information.
- Vaccine safety and adverse events.
Is There Anyone Who Should Not Have The Shingles Vaccination
There are 2 shingles vaccines available in the UK:
- Zostavax, a live vaccine given as 1 dose
- Shingrix, a non-live vaccine given as 2 doses
If Zostavax is not suitable for you, a GP or practice nurse will decide whether to offer you Shingrix instead.
You should not have the shingles vaccine if you’ve had a serious allergic reaction in the past to a previous dose of the shingles vaccine, or to any of the ingredients in the vaccine, or to a previous dose of varicella vaccine.
If you have a weakened immune system a GP or practice nurse will assess which vaccine is suitable for you. Discuss any health concerns with the GP or practice nurse before you have the vaccine.
Zostavax is not suitable for people who have a weakened immune system due to a condition, treatment or medicine.
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Flu Vaccines For Older Adults
Flu short for influenza is a virus that can cause fever, chills, sore throat, stuffy nose, headache, and muscle aches. Flu is very serious when it gets in your lungs. Older adults are at a higher risk for developing serious complications from the flu, such as pneumonia.
The flu is easy to pass from person to person. The virus also changes over time, which means you can get it again. To ensure flu vaccines remain effective, the vaccine is updated every year.
Everyone age 6 months and older should get an annual flu vaccine, but the protection from a flu vaccine can lessen with time, especially in older adults. Still, you are less likely to become seriously ill or hospitalized because of the flu if you get the vaccine. A flu vaccine is especially important if you have a chronic health condition such as heart disease or diabetes.
You should get your vaccine ideally by the end of October each year so you are protected when the flu season starts. It takes at least two weeks for the vaccine to be effective. However, if you have not received your flu vaccine by the end of October, its not too late as flu season typically peaks in December or January. As long as the flu virus is spreading, getting vaccinated will help protect you.
Does The Vaccine Work
In December 2017 Public Health England published an evaluation of the first three years of the shingles vaccination programme in England . This showed that the shingles vaccine was 62% effective against shingles and 70 to 88% effective against post-herpetic neuralgia in this period. Public Health England estimates that there were 17000 fewer GP consultations for shingles than expected in this 3-year period.
In the early 2000s researchers carried out a very large study of Zostavax, the shingles vaccine used in the UK, involving over 38,000 adults aged 60 or older. The results showed that:
- In adults aged between 60 and 70, the vaccine reduced the number of cases of shingles by 51.3%
- In adults aged over 70, the vaccine reduced the number of cases of shingles by 38%
- The vaccine reduced the incidence of post-herpetic neuralgia by over 66% in all age groups
- For those who did get shingles, the vaccine reduced the severity of the disease.
Read the abstract of this study , published in 2005 by Oxman et al.
Adults aged 80 or over are not offered the shingles vaccine. This is because the effectiveness of the vaccine declines with age in older age groups.
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How To Pay For Shingrix
Commercial insurance covers about 96% of insured people for the Shingrix vaccine. Most people with private insurance will pay under $5 for each dose.
Programs like Medicaid cover Shingrix in certain states. Medicare Parts A and B do not cover the shingles vaccine. But individuals covered under Medicare prescription drug plans, or Part D, will have their vaccines covered.
For people who do not have access to insurance, there are a number of vaccine assistance programs and affordable health coverage options available. Many of these programs provide vaccines at little or no cost.
Who Should Not Get The Vaccine
Shingrix is safe and effective for most adults. There is no upper age limit for the vaccine. However, you should not get the shingles vaccine if you:
- Are pregnant
- Currently have shingles
- Have had a severe allergic reaction to Shingrix or any of its ingredients in the past
- Have a moderate or severe illness
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Simultaneous Administration With Other Vaccines
RZV and LZV may be administered concomitantly with other live vaccines given by the parenteral, oral, or intranasal routes. For concomitant parenteral injections, different injection sites and separate needles and syringes should be used.
In general, inactivated vaccines including RZV may be administered concomitantly with, or at any time before or after, other inactivated vaccines or live vaccines protecting against a different disease.
LZV may be given at any time before or after live oral or intranasal vaccines. If two live parenteral vaccines are not administered concomitantly, there should be a period of at least 4 weeks before the second live parenteral vaccine is given.
Concomitant administration of pneumococcal 23-valent polysaccharide vaccine and LZV has not resulted in decreased efficacy and so the two vaccines can be given concomitantly.
For more information, refer to Timing of Vaccine Administration in Part 1.
Simultaneous Pneumococcal And Shingles Vaccines Safe
Giving patients both the herpes zoster and pneumococcal vaccines simultaneously does not seem to undermine the zoster vaccines protective effect, despite FDA concerns to the contrary, researchers from Kaiser Permanente wrote in the journal Vaccine.
The package insert of the zoster vaccine says the two should be given in separate doctor visits. Doing them both at the same time is much more convenient and cheaper for the patient. If it is also safe, there seems no point in doing them separately, the authors wrote.
The FDA had asked the manufacturer of the zoster vaccine to mention in the package insert that the concurrent use of both vaccines detrimentally affects the zoster vaccines ability to generate an immune response.
Hung Fu Tseng, PhD, MPH, said:
Our study found no evidence that receiving the zoster vaccine and pneumococcal vaccine on the same day would compromise the immune response necessary to protect against herpes zoster, also known as shingles.
This study, which started on January 1, 2007 and ended on June 30, 2010, involved two groups of patients aged 60+. 7,187 patients received both vaccines simultaneously while 7,179 received them non-concurrently .
They identified 56 cases of herpes zoster in the simultaneous group and 58 in the other no statistically significant difference in shingles incidence.
Dr. Tseng adds:
If a patient is eligible for both vaccines, the CDC still recommends they both be administered at the same time, despite FDA concerns.
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Questions About Multiple Vaccinations
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Eligible people can start getting their COVID booster shots now but with fall here, what about all the other shots you might need to protect yourself. Can you take them all at the same time?
Those eligible are 65 or older, 50 or older with an underlying health condition, or working a job where you are exposed to a lot of people in the public. A Jefferson County infectious disease doctor said yes, get the booster and you are safe if you want to get a shot for the flu, pneumonia, shingles or hepatitis.
Jefferson County health leaders said the demand for the COVID booster shot has increased. This raises the questions whether you should spread out different shots a person might get to protect themselves for the fall season.
The best way I can describe it is, our immune system knows how to walk and chew gum at the same time. The beauty of that is you can take both vaccines and get the protection that you need, said Dr. Wesley Willeford with JCDH.
Dr. Willeford said people have been getting a variety of vaccines at the same time in the past. He doesnt see a booster shot creating any issues for delaying getting any sort of vaccination. Another health leader says there may be some short-term side effects.
Influenza occasionally gives people a sore arm. No question the booster will give you a sore arm and may give you a flu like illness. Shingles vaccine also give you a flu like illness, said Dr. Don Williamson, Alabama Hospital Association.
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Concurrent Administration Of Vaccines
Pneumococcal vaccines may be administered concomitantly with other vaccines, with the exception of a different formulation of pneumococcal vaccine . There should be at least an 8 week interval between a dose of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine and a subsequent dose of Pneu-P-23 vaccine, and at least a 1 year interval between a dose of Pneu-P-23 vaccine and a subsequent dose of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine refer to Immunocompromised persons for information regarding administration of pneumococcal vaccines to HSCT recipients. Different injection sites and separate needles and syringes must be used for concurrent parenteral injections. Refer to Timing of Vaccine Administration in Part 1 for additional information about concurrent administration of vaccines.
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Can You Get Shingles After Being Vaccinated
Shingles is a viral infection. It presents with a rash followed by an episode of intense pain in the infected area. This is caused by the virus called varicella zoster. This virus also causes chickenpox. If a child has had chickenpox, the virus may not completely go away, lie dormant in the body and come back years later as shingles. Older individuals and immunocompromised individuals are more likely to develop shingles. The shingles vaccine is generally recommended for those older than 50 years of age and immunocompromised individuals .
The United States Food and Drug Administration has approved two vaccines to effectively prevent shingles: Zostavax and Shingrix. Shingrix provides strong protection against shingles and postherpetic neuralgia . Two doses of Shingrix are more than 90 percent effective at preventing shingles and postherpetic neuralgia. The vaccine is more than 85 percent effective for at least the first four years after vaccination. It is possible to get shingles after being vaccinated since no vaccine is 100 percent effective. However, the vaccine can considerably reduce the risk and intensity of shingles episodes.
Shingrix With Prevnar Or Pneumovax
It is safe to get the Shingrix and Prevnar13 or Pneumovax23 vaccines at the same time. The drug manufacturer of Pneumovax23 recommends that when also getting the Zostavax vaccine, that the doses be separated by 4 weeks. In regards to getting over bronchitis, you must be recovered from the bronchitis with no active fever. It is best if you check with your doctor to see if he or she feels it is ok to get the vaccines at this time.
Common side effects will depend upon which vaccines you receive. Here are the most common side effects experienced with each vaccine:
Shingrix
- Pain, redness and swelling at injection site
- Myalgia or muscle pain
- Pain, redness, swelling and itching at injection site
- Headache
- Pain, swelling and redness at injection site
- Fatigue
- Pain, redness and soreness at injection site
- Headache
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Adults At High Risk Of Ipd
Adults with immunocompromising conditions resulting in high risk of IPD, except HSCT, should receive 1 dose of Pneu-C-13 vaccine followed at least 8 weeks later by 1 dose of Pneu-P-23 vaccine, if not previously received. The dose of Pneu-C-13 vaccine should be administered at least 1 year after any previous dose of Pneu-P-23 vaccine. Refer to Immunocompromised persons for information about immunization of HSCT recipients.
Immunocompetent adults with conditions or lifestyle factors resulting in high risk of IPD should receive 1 dose of Pneu-P-23 vaccine, if not previously received. One dose of Pneu-P-23 vaccine is also recommended for all adults who are residents of long-term care facilities and should be considered for individuals who use illicit drugs.
Some experts also suggest a dose of Pneu-C-13 vaccine, followed by Pneu-P-23 vaccine, for immunocompetent adults with conditions resulting in high risk of IPD as this may theoretically improve antibody response and immunologic memory. However, Pneu-P-23 vaccine is the vaccine of choice for these individuals, and if only one vaccine can be provided, it should be Pneu-P-23 vaccine, because of the greater number of serotypes included in the vaccine.
Adults at highest risk of IPD should also receive 1 booster dose of Pneu-P-23 vaccine refer to Booster doses and re-immunization.
Table 4 – provides recommended schedules for adult immunization with pneumococcal vaccines.