The Ministry of Health, Consumption and the Interior will incorporate systematic vaccination against herpes zoster (HZ) for people born between 1943 and 1947, both included, following the latest recommendations of the Public Health Commission in this regard.
Following these recommendations, the University Hospital of Ceuta and the health centers authorized by the Ministry as vaccination centers have administered the HZ vaccine since March 2022 to people with risk conditions from the age of 18: transplant recipients, HIV, blood diseases. malignancies, solid tumors being treated with chemotherapy and people being treated with anti-JAK drugs, groups to which people born in 1957 were added in November of last year, for whom the vaccine is still available in authorized centers.
The vaccination regimen consists of two doses of intramuscular administration with an interval of two months between them. The Ministry recommends that the population to which it is addressed consult their family doctor to provide them with the necessary information and access to vaccination.
Herpes zoster is a highly prevalent and disabling viral infection that particularly affects the elderly and certain risk groups. It is known as ‘shingles’ and it is a viral infection caused by the same virus as chickenpox. It especially affects the elderly (the risk increases with age, reaching up to 50% in those over 85 years of age), as well as certain risk groups, and its complications can cause disability and significantly affect the quality of life of who suffers from it
