국내 대상포진 백신 도입이 대상포진 및 대상포진 후 신경통 발생에 미친 영향 분석

Assessing the Effect of Introducing Herpes Zoster Vaccines on Preventing Herpes Zoster and Post-herpetic Neuralgia in South Korea

OBJECTIVE Herpes zoster (HZ) is a disease accompanied by physical and mental pain along with symptoms such as skin rash. The number of HZ patients in Korea has been continuously increasing. HZ vaccines are available in Korea, and it is estimated that 22.19% of the population aged 50 or older have been vaccinated up until 2018. There is a need to evaluate the impact of the introduction of herpes zoster vaccines in Korea at a time when the national medical burden due to HZ is increasing. METHODS Using the 2010 to 2018 Health Insurance Review Assessment -National Patient Sample data, the prevention effect of HZ vaccines at the national level was evaluated by comparing the incidence of HZ and post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) and the hospitalization rate of HZ patients between before and after the introduction of HZ vaccine in Korea. RESULTS The degree of change of the observed value compared to the expected value of the HZ incidence was -12.10% in the age 50 or older group, and -9.72% in the age under 50 group. For the PHN incidence, it was - 35.63%, -36.98% respectively. For the inpatient rate, it was -18.26, -30.86% respectively. CONCLUSION If further analysis is conducted after a significant increase in the cumulative vaccination rate, the vaccine’s effectiveness will be clearer.