Effectiveness of live varicella (chickenpox) vaccine.

Takahashi M.
Osaka University.

The disease burden of chickenpox to children has been described, and a lower force of neutralising antibody to varicella-zoster virus (VZV) than against measles, either after natural infection or after vaccination, has been reported. In the case of VZV, strong cell-mediated immunity may work efficiently to prevent the spread of the virus. The lower force of humoral antibody to VZV might be related to the occurrence of 'breakthrough' varicella cases in a small portion of the vaccine recipients. Safety and high effectiveness of the varicella vaccine - approximately 85% effective for all diseases and 95 - 100% effective for moderate-to-severe diseases - have been reported. Vaccine-induced immunity persists for 10 - 20 years. However, concerns have been raised that universal immunization in children may shift the susceptibility from children to adults, whose symptoms are usually moderate-to-severe. In addition, other concerns have been expressed that, due to lack of exposure to varicella in children, the elderly may develop zoster infections more frequently than before. A clear answer is difficult to give at present, although, for several reasons, such situations may be unlikely to occur.

Source: Expert Opin Biol Ther. 2004 Feb;4(2):199-216.