Shingles Vaccine (Shingrix): Is it advisable for transplant patients?

Yes, I’m waiting for the research results as well. I try to be hopeful, but I am skeptical.

Is it ok to get the shingles shot while this co-vid is running around ? post kidney xplant 23

Hi @pinkpam Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. We’re a community based forum sharing our stories and experiences to help each other find answers to questions and offer encouragement.

Congratulations on your kidney transplant! Not sure what you mean with the# 23 after xplant. Was it 23 years ago? 23 months? Either way, it’s great you’re doing well!

It’s probably best to consult your transplant office/nurse practitioner to get the answer to your question about getting the shingles shot because they know your health history and would be able to help you make the right decision.
However, from experience I am a bone marrow transplant patient and I just received both Shingrix shots within this past year and also both Pfizer Covid vaccinations. So it can be done during the Covid pandemic. The only thing caveat was that I had to wait 30 days after each Shingrix shot before I could get any other vaccinations. So if you’ve recently had the Covid vaccinations you’ll need to wait 30 days after that shot as well.

Have you had your Covid vaccinations?

Lori is correct…definitely make sure you speak with your transplant team. I’m a liver transplant person and our handbook advices against getting the shingles vaccine after transplant. That’s why I had to get it before my liver transplant.

I have a liver and a kidney transplant. I was able to get the Zostavax, a live vaccine before I was transplanted. After my transplant when the nonliving vaccine, Shingrix, became available, my transplant team advised me to get it. It is 2 doses at 6 months apart.

Both vaccines are approved for adults age 50 and older for the prevention of shingles and related complications. I was 60 when I got my transplant, so age wise, I qualified. @athenalee, Did you get the Zostavax or the Shingrix?

@pinkpam, Do you qualify (age 50) for the shingles vaccine? Why don't you discuss this with your transplant team because we are patients and have only our own experiences to rely on? Will you let us know what you find out?

Just a quick FYI…From what I’m finding in my searches, Zostavax is no longer available in the US.
https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd/shingles/public/zostavax/index.html

I would have had Zostavax in 2009 before transplant. I got the Shingrix in 2017.

Hi I am post 23 year kidney transplant - they have been wanting me to get the shingrix and i have always had Another problem so i didn't get it. I got my two co-vid vaccines in the spring and did ok. Looks like now i need the booster. How do i jungle that Shingrix in there - MM"M

Good morning, @pinkpam. Are you in the US? I saw a flash on the news this morning that the booster Covid19 vaccine was approved for us transplant recipients. Not knowing the details, and with my internet going goofy this morning, I don't know anything else about it. However, I am a long distant patient with Mayo in Rochester and I am hopeful to learn more details about whether/when this will actually happen for me.
I plan to contact my transplant nurse via my patient portal before I get the vaccine, because that is what I do when a general directive is given for anything regarding my health. I think that you and your transplant team can work together to determine the best timing for your shingles (2 doses) and the Covid booster. These are complicated times for all of us.
I wish you the best of health and a workable solution to your vaccinations.

I received the Zoster, two shots, last spring/summer; I was 61. Not a pleasant reaction…so, glad I got it out of the way. But certainly better than shingles.

Hopefully with the newer vaccines being “non-living” and more transplant recipients, like you Rosemary, receiving it post-transplant, it’ll become universally authorized.