The study found that healthcare professionals had very positive attitudes towards the varicella vaccine, with many preferring to administer it combined with the MMR vaccine. This indicates a favorable outlook on the vaccine's introduction into routine immunisation schedules.
Acupuncture has been shown to reduce pain and the incidence of postherpetic neuralgia compared to drug treatments. It is particularly effective when applied at the Jia ji acupoint.
Coadministration was found to be immunologically noninferior to sequential administration, with no significant safety concerns, supporting the feasibility of administering both vaccines together.
The implementation of the National Herpes Zoster Immunisation Program resulted in an estimated prevention of 7000 herpes zoster cases within two years of the program's commencement. The incidence of herpes zoster decreased significantly in the targeted age group of 70-79 years, with a notable reduction observed particularly in women.
The study found that while the vaccine efficacy (VE) for preventing varicella was low (48.1% for all ages), vaccination significantly reduced the severity of the disease, as measured by the length of school absence due to varicella infection.
Both dialysis patients and controls showed an increase in VZV-gE specific CD4 T-cell levels and VZV-specific IgG antibodies after vaccination, although levels were lower in patients compared to controls.
The study found that 30.8% of women receiving oral aciclovir developed chickenpox compared to 36.6% of those receiving VZIG, suggesting similar effectiveness in preventing the disease.