| ▲ The mechanism by which shingles increases the risk of stroke has been revealed. (Photo = DB) |
[메디컬투데이=이승재 기자] The mechanism by which shingles increases stroke risk has been elucidated.
A study on the mechanism by which shingles increases the risk of stroke was published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases.
When you get chickenpox as a child, you leave the varicella zoster virus (VZV) in your body behind. This leftover VZV can cause shingles in adulthood.
Although shingles can only cause mild itching or tingling in some people, it can cause extreme pain in some people.
A recent study reported an increased risk of stroke after the acute inflammation caused by shingles subsided. The researchers wanted to find out the mechanism by which shingles causes stroke. They studied the pathogenesis of stroke in 13 herpes zoster patients with a mean age of 62.1 years.
As a result of the study, the incidence of thrombosis was high in patients with herpes zoster. A stroke can occur when a blood clot travels through the bloodstream and blocks a blood vessel in the brain. Furthermore, the movement of inflammatory proteins through exosomes has been observed a lot in patients with herpes zoster.
Exosomes are small pockets formed inside cells and can contain biomolecules such as nucleic acids or proteins. Cells release exosomes outside the cell, and released exosomes can travel throughout the body through the bloodstream.
The researchers concluded that blood clots and inflammation caused by shingles increased the risk of stroke. They added that, in theory, getting the VZV vaccine could reduce the risk of stroke caused by shingles. However, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) vaccines VZV vaccines only in high-risk groups, such as those over the age of 50 or those over the age of 19 with weakened immune systems.
Therefore, if it is difficult to obtain the VZV vaccine, the researchers said, it is recommended that you consult with your doctor to find other ways to prevent stroke.
Medical Today reporter Lee Seung-jae ([email protected])
[저작권자ⓒ 메디컬투데이. 무단전재-재배포 금지]
