Abstract TP493: Herpes Zoster Vaccine Live And Risk For Stroke Among Medicare Beneficiaries: Population Based Matched Cohort Study
Introduction: Herpes zoster (HZ) is associated with increased risk of stroke, and Zoster Vaccine Live (ZVL) reduces risk of HZ. No study examined the association between ZVL and risk for stroke. The present study examined this association among US older population. Methods: We included 1,382,051 Medicare fee-for-service beneficiaries age ≥66 years without a history of stroke and who received ZVL during 2008-2014, and 1,382,051 matched controls (using a comprehensive list of matching variables) without ZVL followed from ZVL receipt to December 31 2016. We used Cox proportional hazard models to examine the association between ZVL and composite fatal/non-fatal incident stroke outcomes. Results: During a median of 3.9 years follow-up (interquartile range 2.7-5.4), we documented 42,267 stroke events including 33,510 acute ischemic strokes (AIS) and 4,318 hemorrhagic strokes among beneficiaries who received ZVL over 5,890,113 person years. The corresponding numbers for controls were 48,139, 39,334, and 4,713 during 5,693,943 person years. Crude incidence comparing beneficiaries with and without ZVL were 7.18 vs. 8.45 per 1000 person years for all stroke, 5.40 vs. 6.53 for AIS, and 0.73 vs. 0.82 for hemorrhagic stroke (p<0.001 for difference). Adjusted hazard ratios comparing beneficiaries with ZVL to controls were 0.84 (95% CI 0.83-0.85), 0.82 (0.81-0.83), and 0.88 (0.84-0.91) for all stroke, AIS and hemorrhagic stroke respectively. The association between ZVL and risk for stroke appeared to be stronger among beneficiaries 66-79 years compared to those ≥80 years of age (p=0.020 for interaction), but largely consistent across sex, and racial groups. Conclusion: Among Medicare beneficiaries, receipt of ZVL was associated with lower incidence of stroke. Further study is needed to confirm our findings.