Can you get a shingles attack from shingles vaccination?

Normally you can't get a full blown shingles (zona) attack from the shingles vaccination. However, a recent study did find a number of cases of ophthalmologic shingles immediately after vaccination.

Shingrix is ​​a recombinant, non-live vaccine. This means that it does not contain a live virus, so it cannot cause an infection. Shingrix contains a protein from the virus and a substance that boosts the immune response, which helps to stimulate the immune system without the risk of infection.

Zostavax is a live, attenuated virus vaccine. Although it contains a weakened form of the virus, the virus in the vaccine is not strong enough to cause an active infection in people with a normally functioning immune system.

Some people experience mild side effects after vaccination, such as redness, swelling or pain at the injection site, or sometimes mild flu-like symptoms. These reactions are a sign that the immune system is responding to the vaccination, but they are not the same as a full-blown shingles attack.

A higher number of cases of ophthalmic shingles were reported after administration of the vaccine compared to people who were not vaccinated. The recombinant shingles vaccine does not contain a live vaccine, so the increased risk of reactivation of ophthalmic shingles is probably not linked to reinfection by the virus, but to an immune response to one or more components of the vaccine.

Source: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaophthalmology/article-abstract/2814944

Source: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/shingles/public/shingrix/index.html

Author: Prof. Dr. Dirk Devroey - Latest update: 2024-08-10 - Copyright: Clinifacts 2025