Juutinen Aapo, Salo Heini, Lehtonen Toni, Leino Tuija
Welfare Epidemiology and Monitoring Unit, Department of Public Health, Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Helsinki, Finland.
Research Unit of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
Euro Surveill. 2025 Sep;30(35). doi: 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2025.30.35.2500077.
BACKGROUNDHerpes zoster, also known as shingles, is a painful skin condition caused by varicella zoster virus. Information is lacking on incidence of herpes zoster in Finland.AIMTo estimate age-specific annual incidence of herpes zoster over 9 years with data from several nationwide health registers.METHODSIn a nationwide study, we compiled a dataset encompassing the entire Finnish population by linking data from multiple population-based registers for 2015-23. The dataset includes records from nearly all healthcare providers in Finland. Case definitions were based on ICD-10 codes B02 and G53.0, and ICPC-2 code S70. The dataset was supplemented with information on the purchase of prescribed antiviral medication.RESULTSIn total, 220,693 herpes zoster cases were identified during 2015-23 among adults aged ≥ 20 years. In 2023, when register coverage was best, age-specific annual incidence rates for the entire population varied from 3.8 to 12.2, increasing with age. Incidence was higher among females than males, and highest among elderly aged ≥ 85 years living at home without organised care. Cumulative incidence data from 2023 revealed that lifetime risk of developing herpes zoster by age 85 was 42%, and as high as 46% using the incidence among elderly living at home without organised care.CONCLUSIONHerpes zoster incidence varied by sex and age group, and appeared to be under-reported in institutional and organised care settings. Currently, there is no official decision on herpes zoster vaccination in Finland, despite favourable recommendations from the national expert group and the National Advisory Committee on Vaccination.
背景
带状疱疹，又称蛇串疮，是一种由水痘-带状疱疹病毒引起的疼痛性皮肤病。芬兰缺乏带状疱疹发病率的相关信息。
目的
利用来自多个全国性健康登记处的数据，估计9年间带状疱疹的年龄特异性年发病率。
方法
在一项全国性研究中，我们通过链接2015年至2023年多个基于人群的登记处的数据，汇编了一个涵盖芬兰全体人口的数据集。该数据集包括芬兰几乎所有医疗服务提供者的记录。病例定义基于国际疾病分类第十版（ICD-10）编码B02和G53.0，以及国际初级保健分类第二版（ICPC-2）编码S70。该数据集还补充了有关购买处方抗病毒药物的信息。
结果
2015年至2023年期间，在年龄≥20岁的成年人中，共确诊220,693例带状疱疹病例。2023年登记覆盖情况最佳时，全人群的年龄特异性年发病率在3.8至12.2之间，随年龄增长而增加。女性发病率高于男性，在85岁及以上居家且无机构护理的老年人中发病率最高。2023年的累积发病率数据显示，到85岁时患带状疱疹的终生风险为42%，若采用居家且无机构护理的老年人的发病率，则高达46%。
结论
带状疱疹发病率因性别和年龄组而异，在机构护理和有组织护理环境中似乎报告不足。尽管国家专家组和国家疫苗接种咨询委员会提出了有利建议，但芬兰目前尚未就带状疱疹疫苗接种做出官方决定。
