Herpes zoster after COVID-19 vaccination, aspect of pain medicine: a retrospective, single-center study

Abstract

Background Herpes zoster (HZ) is one of the most common cutaneous adverse reactions associated with the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccine and has been widely reported. This study aimed to evaluate HZ following COVID-19 vaccination from the viewpoint of pain management. Methods A retrospective study was conducted on 42 patients with HZ who visited the pain clinic between August 2021 and October 2021. Medical records were reviewed to compare pain severity, treatment methods, treatment duration, and incidence rate of postherpetic neuralgia (PHN) in patients who received COVID-19 vaccination within 6 weeks prior to developing symptoms compared with other patients with HZ. Results Fourteen patients developed HZ within 6 weeks after vaccination and were significantly younger than the other HZ groups. There were no significant differences in the frequency of prodromal pain, location of pain, pain severity, treatment methods, treatment duration, or incidence of PHN compared with the other HZ groups. Conclusions COVID-19 vaccination-related HZ showed clinical features similar to those of the other HZ.

Keywords

• covid-19
• herpes zoster
• postherpetic neuralgia
• vaccination
• varicella zoster virus.