The Claim:
The anti-vaccine ghoul who prowls social media and falsely connects other people’s stories to vaccination is now connecting this woman’s Shingles journey to COVID vaccination.
The Facts:
Shingles is caused by the the varicella zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. Once you’ve had chickenpox, the virus can live within your nerve cells and lay dormant until it can reactivate later in life as shingles. While there is a vaccine for chickenpox now, those born before 1995 when the vaccine was first introduced, were likely to have contracted chickenpox. And 30% of all people who contract chickenpox are likely to develop shingles later in life.
So why does this not practicing doctor believe her shingles was the result of a vaccine she spoke about more than a year prior to her developing shingles? While there is some evidence that the vaccine can cause a reactivation of the varicella zoster virus on rare occasions, those tend to happen within days of the vaccine. More importantly, the risk of developing shingles exists with COVID infection itself.
Disclaimer: Science is always evolving and our understanding of these topics may have evolved too since this was originally posted. Be sure to check out our most recent posts and browse the latest Just the Facts Topics for the latest.
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