Zostavax could help reduce EU pain burden

Vaccines development firm Sanofi Pasteur MSD, a joint venture between Sanofi-Aventis and the USA's Merck & Co, says that prevention of shingles and postherpeutic neuralgia through vaccination with Zostavax (live varicella zoster vaccine) could reduce the burden of pain suffered by Europe's older citizens. The firm's announcement follows the launch of an International Association for the Study of Pain campaign to highlight the problem of chronic pain.

The company added that the reactivation of the varicella zoster virus in later life is often linked to chronic and persistent pain referred to as PHN, resulting from damage to nerve cells in which the virus has remained dormant prior to reactivation. Current estimates suggest that around 1.8 million Europeans develop shingles each year, 12,000 of whom require hospitalization.

In addition, the firm said that current treatments for shingles-related PHN are often unsatisfactory due to inadequate pain relief and adverse reactions. It added that studies of Zostavax showed that the agent reduced the incidence of the disease 51%, compared with placebo, as well as lowering the occurrence of related long term pain 73%.