title: Herpes zoster infection increases the risk of peripheral arterial disease: A nationwide cohort study.
abstract: Varicella-zoster virus infection can cause meningoencephalitis, myelitis, ocular disorders, and vasculopathy. However, no study has investigated the association between herpes zoster (HZ) and peripheral arterial disease (PAD).We identified newly diagnosed HZ from the Taiwan's National Health Insurance Research Database recorded during 2000 to 2010, with a follow-up period extending until December 31, 2011. In addition, we included a comparison cohort that was randomly frequency-matched with the HZ cohort according to age, sex, and index year. We analyzed the risk of PAD with respect to sex, age, and comorbidities by using Cox proportional-hazards regression models.In total, 35,391 HZ patients and 141,556 controls were enrolled in this study. The risk of PAD was 13% increased in the HZ cohort than in the comparison cohort after adjustment for age, sex, and comorbidities. The Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed that the risk of PAD was significantly higher in the HZ cohort than in the non-HZ cohort (P < 0.001).This nationwide population-based cohort study revealed a higher risk of PAD in patients with HZ infection than in those without the infection. Careful follow-up and aggressive treatment is recommended for patients with HZ to reduce the risk of PAD.
authors: Division of Infectious Diseases and Tropical Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center Department of Neurology, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei Management Office for Health Data, China Medical University Hospital College of Medicine, China Medical University Graduate Institute of Clinical Medical Science and School of Medicine, College of Medicine, China Medical University Department of Nuclear Medicine and PET Center, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung Department of Bioinformatics and Medical Engineering, Asia University, Taichung Graduate Institute of Chinese Medicine, China Medical University Molecular and Genomic Epidemiology Center, China Medical University Hospital, Taichung Department of Medical Laboratory Science and Biotechnology, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan.
authors: Te-Yu
authors: TY
authors: Lin
authors: Fu-Chi
authors: FC
authors: Yang
authors: Cheng-Li
authors: CL
authors: Lin
authors: Chia-Hung
authors: CH
authors: Kao
authors: Hsin-Yi
authors: HY
authors: Lo
authors: Tse-Yen
authors: TY
authors: Yang
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015897:Comorbidity; D005260:Female; D006562:Herpes Zoster / Q000150:complications* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D058729:Peripheral Arterial Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology