Herpes Zoster News and Research

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Herpes Zoster, also called shingles, is a painful skin rash caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. After a person recovers from chickenpox, the virus remains inactive in the body. Usually the virus does not cause any further problems; however, the virus may re-emerge years later, causing shingles.

Shingles becoming more common in Australia

The herpes zoster virus, which causes shingles, is becoming more common as the population ages. In Australia the number of cases has doubled between 2000 and 2010. Hospital emergency departments report a 2–6% increase in cases per year.

28 Sep 2012

Broad spectrum sunscreens needed to block UVB and UVA

Writing in the latest edition of Australian Prescriber, Associate Professor Jane Hanrahan from the Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Sydney writes that UVB is the cause of sunburn, but UVA can be more damaging to the skin. It is therefore best to use broad spectrum sunscreens that block both wavebands.

28 Sep 2012

Cancer fears allayed for shingles patients

Herpes zoster infection, or shingles, is not associated with cancer, show results from a study published in the Canadian Journal of Medicine

21 Sep 2012

Pfizer announces that 14 abstracts for tofacitinib to be presented at ACR/ARHP annual meeting

Pfizer Inc. announced today that 14 abstracts for tofacitinib, an investigational oral Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor for the treatment of adults with moderate-to-severe active rheumatoid arthritis (RA), will be presented at the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) / Association of Rheumatology Health Professionals (ARHP) 2012 Annual Meeting, which is being held November 9-14 in Washington, D.C.

18 Sep 2012

Zalicus commences first of two Z160 Phase 2a clinical studies for chronic neuropathic pain

Zalicus Inc., a biopharmaceutical company that discovers and develops novel treatments for patients suffering from pain and immuno-inflammatory diseases, today announced that it has initiated the first of two Phase 2a clinical studies with Z160, its first-in-class, oral, state-dependent, selective N-type calcium channel blocker for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain indications.

5 Sep 2012

EC grants marketing authorization for Pfizer’s INLYTA to treat renal cell carcinoma

Pfizer Inc. announced today that the European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorization for INLYTA (axitinib) for the treatment of adult patients with advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC), a type of kidney cancer, after failure of prior treatment with sunitinib or a cytokine.

4 Sep 2012

Positive results from Spinifex’s EMA401 Phase 2 trial on postherpetic neuralgia

Spinifex Pharmaceuticals, an Australian pain drug development company, today announces positive headline results from the Phase 2 clinical trial of its lead product, EMA401, in postherpetic neuralgia (PHN), a painful condition that develops in some patients following herpes zoster (shingles) and where existing therapy does not relieve pain in all individuals.

28 Aug 2012

Novartis receives EC approval for Jakavi to treat myelofibrosis

Incyte Corporation today announced that its strategic collaborator, Novartis, received approval from the European Commission for Jakavi (INC424, ruxolitinib), an oral JAK 1 and JAK 2 inhibitor discovered by Incyte, for the treatment of disease-related splenomegaly or symptoms in adult patients with primary myelofibrosis (also known as chronic idiopathic myelofibrosis), post-polycythemia vera myelofibrosis or post-essential thrombocythemia myelofibrosis.

28 Aug 2012

Top-line results from Pfizer's tofacitinib Phase 3 study on moderate-to-severe active RA

Pfizer Inc. announced today top-line results from ORAL Start (A3921069), a Phase 3 study of the investigational agent tofacitinib, a novel, oral Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor for the treatment of adults with moderate-to-severe active rheumatoid arthritis (RA).

31 Jul 2012

Once-daily Gralise significantly reduces pain intensity in PHN patients

Depomed, Inc. today announced that a report of Phase 3 data published online this month, ahead of the print edition, in the Clinical Journal of Pain showed that once-daily Gralise (gabapentin) tablets (1,800 mg) formulation significantly reduces intensity of pain in patients with postherpetic neuralgia (PHN).

23 Jul 2012

Herpes zoster vaccine recommendations questioned in patients on biologics

Administration of the live attenuated herpes zoster vaccine is not associated with an increased risk for shingles shortly after vaccination in patients receiving biologic treatments for immune-mediated diseases, researchers report in JAMA.

10 Jul 2012

Live zoster vaccine associated with reduced risk of HZ in patients with immune-mediated diseases

Although some have suggested that patients receiving medication for immune-mediated diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or psoriasis may be at increased risk of herpes zoster (HZ; shingles) shortly after receipt of the vaccine, an analysis that included nearly 20,000 vaccinated Medicare beneficiaries finds that the live zoster vaccine is not associated with an increased risk of HZ shortly after vaccination in patients currently treated with biologics, and that it is associated with a significantly reduced longer-term risk of HZ in patients with an immune-mediated disease, according to a study in the July 4 issue of JAMA.

4 Jul 2012

Shingles vaccine may not increase risk of varicella in people with auto-immune diseases

New research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham casts doubt on the long-standing belief that the vaccine for shingles should not be given to patients taking biologics for auto-immune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

4 Jul 2012

Anti-TNFs increase risk for herpes zoster infections in IRD patients

Patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases who are treated with anti-tumor necrosis factor medications are significantly more likely to experience herpes zoster infections than those treated with traditional disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, study results show.

15 Jun 2012

Rheumatism drugs may increase shingles risk

Patients with inflammatory rheumatic disease treated with one of the most effective medicines for their disease face a substantially increased risk for developing shingles, warn European researchers who suggest vaccination may be an option.

15 Jun 2012

Anti-TNFs increase risk of shingles in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases

Patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases (IRD) treated with anti-tumour necrosis factor medications (anti-TNFs) have a 75% greater risk of developing herpes zoster, or shingles, than patients treated with traditional disease modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs), according to a meta-analysis presented today at EULAR 2012, the Annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism.

8 Jun 2012

FDA approves XenoPort, GSK’s Horizant ER tablets for management of PHN

GlaxoSmithKline plc (GSK) and XenoPort, Inc. announced today that the United States (US) Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Horizant (gabapentin enacarbil) Extended-Release Tablets for the management of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) in adults.

7 Jun 2012

Risk of recurrent shingles episode is relatively low: Study

People who have had an episode of herpes zoster, also known as shingles, face a relatively low short-term risk of developing shingles, according to a Kaiser Permanente Southern California study published online in the Journal of Infectious Diseases. These findings suggest that among people with immune systems that have not been compromised, the risk of a second shingles episode is low.

5 Jun 2012

Herpes zoster vaccine safe and well tolerated: Study

The herpes zoster vaccine, also known as the shingles vaccine, is generally safe and well tolerated according to a Vaccine Safety Datalink study of 193,083 adults published online in the Journal of Internal Medicine.

23 Apr 2012

NIH awards Winston SBIR grant to develop Civamide for postherpetic neuralgia of TN

Winston Pharmaceuticals, Inc.,, announced that the National Institutes of Health has awarded Winston a grant under the Small Business Innovation Research program supporting the development of Civamide, a proprietary TRPV-1 receptor modulator, for the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia of the trigeminal nerve.

9 Apr 2012