PEDIATRICS Vol. 77 No. 1 January 1986, pp. 53-56
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Right arrow Citation Map
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Brunell, P. A.
Right arrow Articles by Lydick, E.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Brunell, P. A.
Right arrow Articles by Lydick, E.

Risk of Herpes Zoster in Children With Leukemia: Varicella Vaccine Compared With History of Chickenpox

Philip A. Brunell MD1, Jean Taylor-Wiedeman MD1, Clementina F. Geiser MD1, Lisa Frierson RN1, and Eva Lydick PhD1

1 From the University of Texas Health Science Center, Department of Pediatrics, San Antonio, and Merck Sharpe & Dohme Research Laboratories, Virus and Cell Biology, West Point, Pennsylvania

A study was undertaken to determine whether children immunized with live varicella vaccine are at greater risk of acquiring herpes zoster than children who have had varicella. Children with acute lymphocytic leukemia who had had varicella were compared with those who received live varicella vaccine. During the period of observation, 15 of 73 children who had varicella acquired herpes zoster and none of the 34 children who had been vaccinated. If the time of observation was adjusted for and the vaccinees who failed to have a sustained antibody response or who acquired chickenpox were removed, the risk of herpes zoster was still less in vaccinees (P = .0075). Because herpes zoster is common in children with acute lymphocytic leukemia, differences in the two groups could be discerned more readily than if normal children were compared. There is no reason to suspect that recipients of live varicella vaccine would be more likely to acquire herpes zoster than children who get varicella.

Key Words: herpes zoster • leukemia • herpes virus • varicella vaccine • chickenpox

Submitted on December 10, 1984
Accepted on May 29, 1985




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 PediatricsHome page
P. Jean-Philippe, A. Freedman, M. W. Chang, S. P. Steinberg, A. A. Gershon, P. S. LaRussa, and W. Borkowsky
Severe Varicella Caused by Varicella-Vaccine Strain in a Child With Significant T-Cell Dysfunction
Pediatrics, November 1, 2007; 120(5): e1345 - e1349.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Clin. Microbiol. Rev.Home page
A. Duchini, J. A. Goss, S. Karpen, and P. J. Pockros
Vaccinations for Adult Solid-Organ Transplant Recipients: Current Recommendations and Protocols
Clin. Microbiol. Rev., July 1, 2003; 16(3): 357 - 364.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J. Clin. Pathol.Home page
J Breuer
Vaccination to prevent varicella and shingles
J. Clin. Pathol., October 1, 2001; 54(10): 743 - 747.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Arch. Dis. Child.Home page
S A Skull and E E L Wang
Current topic: Varicella vaccination{---}a critical review of the evidence
Arch. Dis. Child., August 1, 2001; 85(2): 83 - 90.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 PediatricsHome page
P. A. Brunell and T. Argaw
Chickenpox Attributable to a Vaccine Virus Contracted From a Vaccinee With Zoster
Pediatrics, August 1, 2000; 106(2): 28e - 28.
[Abstract] [Full Text]

Home page
 ANN INTERN MEDHome page
J. I. Cohen, P. A. Brunell, S. E. Straus, and P. R. Krause
Recent Advances in Varicella-Zoster Virus Infection
Ann Intern Med, June 1, 1999; 130(11): 922 - 932.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]