Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Sep 10, 2025 6 months, 4 days, 18 hours, 43 minutes ago
Medical News: Doctors and Medical Researchers Concerned by New Findings!
A new international study has raised concerns about the long-term health effects faced by people who develop herpes zoster (shingles) after a COVID-19 infection. Researchers from Fu Jen Catholic University in Taiwan, Queensland University of Technology in Australia, Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital in Taiwan, and Taoyuan Armed Forces General Hospital in Taiwan conducted the investigation using the TriNetX global research network, which collects anonymized health records from over 140 medical institutions worldwide. According to this
Medical News report, the team sought to understand if shingles following COVID-19 could be a warning sign for more serious blood-related conditions.
Herpes Zoster After COVID-19 Linked to Higher Blood Cancer Risk!
Study Design and Key Findings
The researchers reviewed medical records of adults diagnosed with COVID-19 between January 2020 and January 2022. Patients were divided into two groups: those who developed shingles within a year after COVID-19 and those who did not. Both groups were matched by age, sex, and other health conditions to ensure accurate comparisons. Over a three-year follow-up, outcomes such as leukopenia (a low white blood cell count), urinary tract infections, multiple myeloma, and acute leukemia were carefully monitored.
The results were striking. Patients who experienced shingles after COVID-19 had a much higher risk of developing these serious complications. Older individuals, those with poor kidney function, high inflammation levels, and metabolic problems were found to be at particularly high risk. This suggests that shingles after COVID-19 could act as a red flag for doctors, signaling immune weakness and a higher chance of blood cancers and infections.
What This Means for the Public
The findings highlight the importance of long-term medical follow-up for people who develop shingles after recovering from COVID-19. Doctors may need to monitor these patients closely for potential complications, especially among older adults and those with other health issues. For the general public, this study shows that shingles should not be dismissed as just a painful skin rash. When it appears after COVID-19, it could point to hidden problems in the immune system that may have serious consequences later on.
The study findings were published as an abstract in the peer reviewed journal: Frontiers in Medicine.
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2025.1651614/abstract
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