Childhood chickenpox vaccine reduces later shingles risk.

What the research found

Health guidance says children who receive the chickenpox vaccine have a lower risk of shingles than children infected with wild chickenpox virus. A 2021 review found the vaccine is associated with fewer shingles cases. It also noted the vaccine strain is impaired in its ability to reactivate. Victorian health guidance says immunisation can protect children from developing shingles later in life.

Shingles is not ruled out. A 2024 systematic review found rare serious cases of virus reactivation in immunocompetent children in the years after vaccination, and most also had a shingles rash. A 2023 systematic review of children with shingles in the eye found it also occurred in children who had received the vaccine.

There is a population-level debate. Modelling studies (a 2015 systematic review) and a 2006 review raised the possibility that widespread childhood vaccination could raise shingles rates in older adults. The idea is that less wild chickenpox circulating means fewer natural immune boosts. This concerns adults rather than the vaccinated child's own risk.

What it doesn’t mean

• The strongest evidence compares shingles risk in children. A 2006 review said continued evaluation was needed as the pattern of disease changes with universal vaccination.
• A vaccinated child can still get shingles. Talk to a GP if your child develops a painful, blistering rash on one side of the body, especially near the eye.
• The vaccine's main purpose is to prevent chickenpox and its complications. Shingles protection is an added benefit, not the main reason to vaccinate.