Shingles vaccine on offer to immuno-suppressed 18-49 year olds

If you are living in Milton Keynes, aged 18 - 49 and have a severely weakened immune system, you can protect yourself against shingles this winter. 

You can book an appointment for the vaccine with your GP surgery. GPs will start to contact people over the coming weeks.

This includes residents with conditions such as leukaemia or lymphoma or those who are undergoing chemotherapy, which put them at greater risk of becoming seriously unwell if they contract shingles.

The NHS has previously expanded the shingles vaccination programme to include all over 50s with a severely weakened immune system.

What is shingles?

Shingles is caused by the reactivation of the varicella zoster virus (which causes chickenpox) and usually occurs decades after initial infection. The condition causes a painful rash and typically lasts between 2 and 4 weeks.

1 in 5 people will go on to develop shingles in their lifetime and although most people make a full recovery, it can cause serious problems including persistent pain known as post-herpetic neuralgia, eye problems, and even lead to pneumonia, hepatitis and inflammation of the brain.

Individuals who are severely immunosuppressed are most at risk of serious illness and complications from shingles.

The vaccine is currently available to people aged 65 to 79 and severely immunosuppressed individuals from 50 years of age.

Find out more about shingles on the NHS website 

Image: Polina Tankilevitch, Pexels.