Shingles Hits Treasure Coast Adults Under 50, Doctors Push Vaccine

Shingles — the nerve-scorching reactivation of the chickenpox virus — is sending a growing number of patients into urgent care well before their 50th birthday. Doctors warn that fewer than four in 10 eligible adults on the Treasure Coast and nationwide have taken the step most likely to prevent it.

Only 36% of adults over 50 had received at least one dose of a shingles vaccine as of 2022, public health data show. This represents a troubling gap given that roughly one in three Americans will develop the disease in their lifetime. For residents of Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties, where the population skews older than the state average, the stakes are especially high.

Shingles occurs when the varicella-zoster virus — the same pathogen that causes chickenpox — reawakens after lying dormant for years in a nerve root. When it resurfaces, it inflames the nerve, then erupts through the skin as blisters accompanied by burning, itching, and pain that sufferers describe as continuous hornet stings across an entire side of the body, according to Dr. Maria Carney, a geriatrician and executive director of the Northwell Aging Institute on Long Island.

Doctors recommend vaccination at 50, when insurance typically covers the two-shot series, because immune function begins to decline around that age. But physical and emotional stress can trigger shingles far earlier. The number of people developing shingles quadrupled from the 1940s to the early 2000s. Recent research points to chronic conditions — including diabetes and asthma, both prevalent across the Treasure Coast — as risk factors for younger patients.

Two recent studies are adding urgency to the vaccination conversation. Research published in the Journals of Gerontology in January found that people who received the shingles vaccine showed slower biological aging at the molecular level, including reduced systemic inflammation, compared with those who had not been vaccinated, according to lead researcher Eileen Crimmins, a professor of gerontology at the University of Southern California. A separate December study found the vaccine may also offer some protection against dementia, though scientists say more research is needed to understand the mechanism.

The window for effective treatment is narrow. Antiviral medication works best within the first few days of an outbreak, before nerve damage deepens. Between 1% and 10% of shingles patients develop post-herpetic neuralgia — chronic nerve pain that can persist for years — according to a 2024 study cited in public health literature.

Treasure Coast residents 50 and older can ask their primary care provider or local pharmacy about Shingrix, the current two-dose vaccine. Those with diabetes, asthma, or other immune-compromising conditions should discuss earlier vaccination with their physician.

This article was generated with AI assistance using publicly available information. It was reviewed and approved by a human editor before publication. TC Sentinel uses AI writing tools in accordance with FTC guidelines.