Dosh Heba, Almaghrabi Murouj, Al Qurashi Jehad
General Practice, Heraa General Hospital, Makkah, SAU.
Preventive Medicine, Makkah Health Cluster, Makkah, SAU.
Cureus. 2025 Aug 11;17(8):e89824. doi: 10.7759/cureus.89824. eCollection 2025 Aug.
This study aims to evaluate adults' willingness to receive the herpes zoster (HZ) vaccine in Saudi Arabia and identify key factors influencing their decisions.
A cross-sectional study was conducted among adults aged ≥18 years across five Saudi regions from August to September 2024. Data were collected using an Arabic electronic questionnaire covering vaccination prevalence, knowledge, willingness, barriers, and strategies to enhance HZ vaccine uptake.
Among 579 participants, only 14.3% of older adults aged 50+ years (54/377) received the vaccine, with an overall HZ vaccination rate of 10.9%. The primary motivators were healthcare provider recommendations (57.1%) and awareness of benefits (34.9%). Of non-vaccinated individuals, 51.7% expressed willingness to vaccinate if barriers were removed, while 48.3% remained unwilling. The main barrier was a lack of awareness (41.9%). Vaccination rates were significantly higher among residents of the eastern region (26.5%, p = 0.001), those aged 60+ years (25.6%, p = 0.001), and urban residents (12.6%, p = 0.004). Among the non-vaccinated, willingness to vaccinate was higher among individuals from the southern region (64.3%, p = 0.001), aged 30-49 years (53.8%, p = 0.001), urban dwellers (52.3%, p = 0.004), highly educated (56.4%, p = 0.020), recipients of other vaccines (57.7%, p = 0.001), and those with prior shingles diagnoses (57.9%, p = 0.006).
HZ vaccination remains underutilized in Saudi Arabia despite moderate awareness levels. Healthcare provider recommendations, public education, and system-level interventions are critical to improving uptake. National strategies must address disparities in access, knowledge, and provider engagement to enhance preventive healthcare outcomes for at-risk populations.
本研究旨在评估沙特阿拉伯成年人接种带状疱疹（HZ）疫苗的意愿，并确定影响其决策的关键因素。
2024年8月至9月，在沙特五个地区对18岁及以上成年人开展了一项横断面研究。使用阿拉伯文电子问卷收集数据，内容涵盖疫苗接种率、知识、意愿、障碍以及提高HZ疫苗接种率的策略。
在579名参与者中，50岁及以上的老年人中只有14.3%（54/377）接种了疫苗，总体HZ疫苗接种率为10.9%。主要动机是医疗服务提供者的建议（57.1%）和对益处的认知（34.9%）。在未接种疫苗的个体中，51.7%表示如果消除障碍愿意接种，而48.3%仍然不愿意。主要障碍是缺乏认知（41.9%）。东部地区居民的疫苗接种率显著更高（26.5%，p = 0.001），60岁及以上人群的接种率为（25.6%，p = 0.001），城市居民的接种率为（12.6%，p = 0.004）。在未接种疫苗者中，南部地区的个体接种意愿更高（64.3%，p = 0.001），年龄在30 - 49岁之间的人群接种意愿为（53.8%，p = 0.001），城市居民为（52.3%，p = 0.004），受过高等教育者为（56.4%，p = 0.020），接种过其他疫苗者为（57.7%，p = 0.001），以及曾患带状疱疹者为（57.9%，p = 0.006）。
尽管认知水平中等，但沙特阿拉伯的HZ疫苗接种率仍然较低。医疗服务提供者的建议、公众教育和系统层面的干预对于提高接种率至关重要。国家战略必须解决在可及性、知识和医疗服务提供者参与方面的差异，以改善高危人群的预防性医疗保健结果。
