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July 15, 2002
U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS
"Use of an Inactivated Varicella Vaccine in Recipients of Hematopoietic-Cell Transplants" New England Journal of Medicine Online (www.nejm.org) (07/04/02) Vol. 347, No. 1, P. 26; Hata, Atsuko; Asanuma, Hideomi; Rinki, Mary
Patients who receive hematopoietic-cell transplants often contract zoster from the reactivation of varicella-zoster virus from latency. To determine if a varicella vaccine would be effective in preventing the illness, 119 patients who were to receive hematopoietic-cell transplants were enrolled in a trial of a varicella vaccine, and were given either the vaccine or placebo at 30 days before transplantation and 30 days, 60 days, and 90 days after the process. The goal of the program was to prevent varicella-zoster virus for a period of 12 months. In the vaccinated group of 53 patients, zoster developed in seven, compared to 19 patients in the unvaccinated group of 58 patients. The respective rates of infection were 13 percent and 30 percent. Patients who received the vaccine had higher in vitro CD4 T-cell proliferation against varicella-zoster at all points in the study than those without the vaccination. The findings indicate that vaccinating patients against varicella-zoster before hematopoietic-cell transplantation can lower the risk of contracting the illness for at least 12 months.
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