Evaluation of clinical characteristics, risk factors and prognosis of herpes zoster (shingles) infection in Turkiye: VARICOMP-adult-2 study

Abstract

Objective: The study aimed to determine the estimated prevalence of herpes zoster (HZ) infection in the adult population in Turkiye and the rates of HZ-associated complications and risk factors. Methods: This retrospective, multicenter ( n = 11), cross-sectional study was conducted between January 2016 and January 2022 and included all patients aged >= 18 years diagnosed with shingles following screening based on ICD-10 codes. The prevalence of HZ infection was calculated; rates of HZ-related complications (recurrence, hospitalization, postherpetic neuralgia [PHN]) and associated risk factors were determined. Results: A total of 6114 HZ patients were included; the estimated 5-year HZ prevalence in Turkiye was 908.7 per 10 0,0 0 0 population. Of the patients, 851 (14.2%) were immunocompromised, 366 (6%) were hospitalized due to HZ, 284 (8.9%) experienced PHN, 97 (3.2%) experienced recurrence of the patients. Risk factors for PHN were older age ( >= 50 years [OR = 3.19; P < 0.001)], and trigeminal dermatome involvement (OR = 2.45; P = 0.006). Antiviral use was associated with reduced PHN risk (OR = 0.16; P < 0.001). Conclusions: Our multicenter cross-sectional study revealed the high burden of HZ in Turkiye and high-lighted the potential for increasing prevalence due to risk factors including aging and comorbidities. (c) 2025 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of International Society for Infectious Diseases. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)