The Ministry of Health decided not to incorporate the vaccine for the prevention of herpes zoster into the Unified Health System (SUS). The decision is in concierge published in the Official Gazette of the Union (DOU).
According to a report released by the National Commission for the Incorporation of Technologies into the Unified Health System (Conitec), available online, the vaccine was considered expensive given the impact it could have in combating the disease.
The adjuvanted recombinant vaccine for preventing herpes zoster is aimed at elderly people aged 80 years or older and immunocompromised individuals aged 18 years or older.
“The Medicines Committee recognized the importance of the vaccine for preventing herpes zoster, but highlighted that additional considerations regarding the price offer need to be negotiated, in order to reach a value with a sustainable budgetary impact for the SUS”, states the report.
The report also presents a calculation of the costs in relation to the population that would benefit from the vaccine. “By vaccinating 1.5 million patients per year, the cost would be R$1.2 billion per year and, in the fifth year, vaccinating the remaining 471 thousand patients at a cost of R$380 million. At the end of five years, the total investment would be R$5.2 billion. Therefore, the vaccine was considered not cost-effective”, says the published text.
According to the ordinance published this week, the matter may be subjected to a new evaluation process by Conitec, if new facts are presented that could change the result of the analysis carried out.
Herpes zoster
Shingles is a health condition caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. When a person has chickenpox, the virus remains in the body and can be reactivated throughout life, causing shingles. This reactivation is more common in elderly people or people with low immunity.
The first symptoms are burning, itching, skin sensitivity, low fever and tiredness. After a day or two, red spots appear that evolve into small blisters filled with fluid. These blisters can dry out and form scabs. The lesions appear on only one side of the body and follow the path of a nerve, which gives shingles its characteristic appearance. The most affected areas tend to be the trunk, face, lower back and neck. This process takes approximately two to three weeks.
According to information from the report released by Conitec, herpes zoster generally improves on its own, but in some cases it can cause serious complications, such as changes to the skin, nervous system, eyes and ears.
Treatment in SUS
In mild cases without risk of worsening, SUS offers symptomatic treatment with medicines to relieve pain, fever and itching, as well as hygiene and skin care guidelines.. When the risk is greater, such as in elderly, immunocompromised people or people with serious illness, the use of the antiviral acyclovir is recommended.
According to data from the SUS Ambulatory Information Systems (SIA/SUS) and hospital Information Systems (SIH/SUS), between 2008 and 2024, 85,888 outpatient visits and 30,801 hospitalizations of patients with herpes zoster were recorded in Brazil.
According to data from the SUS Mortality Information System, between 2007 and 2023, 1,567 people died from herpes zoster in the country, which represented a mortality rate from the disease of 0.05 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants in the period. Of the total deaths registered, 90% were of people aged 50 years or older, with 53.4% in elderly people over 80 years of age.
