Is the Shingles Vaccine now available in Thailand?

[lopburi3]

You can get it more than once so perhaps should get after recover.

[ThaiBob]

1 hour ago, lopburi3 said:

You can get it more than once so perhaps should get after recover.

I will . 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

The shingles vaccine doesn't totally prevent the possibility of contracting shingles. But it does significantly lessen your chances of getting it.

[daij1944]

There are alternatives besides Western medicine. I had an attack of shingles around 2000 before the shingles vaccine existed. There was nothing the hospital could offer. I was in California and went to an acupuncturist for treatment. Dr Ou (of Grand Ave, Oakland) put me on a bizarre diet (no flowering vegetables, no spicy food, no wine...) and gave me acupuncture. The symptoms (a stabbing pain from inside) went down daily. I even gave it a test, after about 6 days and ate a chorizo (spicy sausage): the stabbing pains came back within an hour.  Eventually after 10 days and about 4 acupuncture sessions I was symptom free.  I think its best to keep your options open, Western and Eastern medicine.

[billd766]

I am glad that this thread has surfaced. I am 72 and I cannot remember if I ever had chicken pox. My son came home from school on Friday feeling rough and his Mum took him to the doctor.

 

Confirmed, he has chicken pox.

 

I don't know the incubation period but so far I feel normal.

[Katia]

If you don't get sick, your next move if possible might be to have your doctor do a titer and see if you have the varicella antibodies.  (My doctor checked mine several years ago to make sure my antibodies from having had chicken pox as a child held up-- if they hadn't, she would have given me the vaccine.)

[Sheryl]

On 7/26/2016 at 8:49 PM, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

I went to Mission Hospital today in the Ratchathewi area of BKK, and the pharmacist there checked and quoted me 5,300 baht for the Zostavax vaccine.

That's their fee for the vaccine itself, not including the related doctor visit that would be required to obtain it, though at Mission, the doctor fee is going to be less than 1,000 baht for sure.

 

It's 4,445 at MedConsult Asia and no doctor visit required, no service fee. You get it from the nurse. Can just walk in for it.

http://www.medconsultasia.com/vaccinations

[Spaniel]

This reply is just for comparison.    When I was in the USA last year the shot was available at RiteAide for $250 or around B8750  @35/1.    So the price at Medconsultasia  looks pretty good.      Shot was not covered by Medicare.

Edited February 21, 2017 by Spaniel
Add info.

[billd766]

12 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

It's 4,445 at MedConsult Asia and no doctor visit required, no service fee. You get it from the nurse. Can just walk in for it.

http://www.medconsultasia.com/vaccinations

 

My problem is that I live in deepest, darkest rural Khampaeng Phet. The nearest local hospital is 15km away and the nearest regional hospital is at Khampaeng Phet 65km away. Both are government hospitals though there is a private hospital in KPP as well.

 

Is there an incubation period for the crossover of chicken pox to shingles and if there is, roughly how long is it?

 

My son came down with it on Friday 17th February.

[lopburi3]

You said you were not sure if you had chinckenpox but at age 72 it is probably extremely likely that you have (vaccine did not become available until the late 80's early 90's) so almost all of us had it as a child.  Believe shingles would be reactivation of cells in your body rather than catching from someone else so do not believe you are in danger because of child - but anyone young that has not had (or had vaccine) would be.  

 

But as I have done, and many here recommend, getting the new shingles vaccine might be a good investment as it can be very painful from what those who get report.  Even if it does not prevent it may help lessen the discomfort.  

[billd766]

8 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

You said you were not sure if you had chinckenpox but at age 72 it is probably extremely likely that you have (vaccine did not become available until the late 80's early 90's) so almost all of us had it as a child.  Believe shingles would be reactivation of cells in your body rather than catching from someone else so do not believe you are in danger because of child - but anyone young that has not had (or had vaccine) would be.  

 

But as I have done, and many here recommend, getting the new shingles vaccine might be a good investment as it can be very painful from what those who get report.  Even if it does not prevent it may help lessen the discomfort.  

 

Thank you for boosting my morale like that.

 

I can remember getting measles but not German measles as I had no swastikas on me body but chicken pox I simply can't remember.

 

I probably did in the 1950's but there is nobody left around that I can ask.

 

I had a look at my son tonight before he went into the shower and he is full of spots from top to toe but he must feel better as he is wide eyed and bushy tailed and even hijacked my computer today, something he hasn't done since last Friday.

Edited February 21, 2017 by billd766

[Katia]

I'm thinking I had read somewhere that chickenpox is the first time.  Shingles occurs the second time zoster pops up.  The concern for an older person, I believe, is that even chickenpox would not be a walk in the park, so it's not something to mess with.  If you are able to have the vaccine, do it.  (Shingles is no fun either, or so I've been told by people who've had it-- and those being ones who had it as young people-- so even if you've had chicken pox, consider the shingles vaccine.)

[SpokaneAl]

 
My problem is that I live in deepest, darkest rural Khampaeng Phet. The nearest local hospital is 15km away and the nearest regional hospital is at Khampaeng Phet 65km away. Both are government hospitals though there is a private hospital in KPP as well.
 
Is there an incubation period for the crossover of chicken pox to shingles and if there is, roughly how long is it?
 
My son came down with it on Friday 17th February.

15 k is hardly a long ways to travel. I recommend that rather than procrastinating, you go get the shot.


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[billd766]

18 minutes ago, SpokaneAl said:

 

 

15 k is hardly a long ways to travel. I recommend that rather than procrastinating, you go get the shot.


Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect

15bkm is just the local government cottage hospital. For anything serious you get shipped off to the regional hospital which is 65km away.

[Sheryl]

I routinely travel 150 km each way for medical care...and consider myself luckier than some. Though it makes for a very long day, possible to go and come back same day. I know plenty for whom overnight stay is necessary.

You do indeed need to have had chickenpix to get shingles and there is usually a long time lag between. The reason shingles tends to afflict elderly is that over the years the antibodies formed when they had chickenpox as a child gradually decline until no long high enough to keep the virus suppressed.

Chickenpox in adults is dreadful. If you think you never had then better get vaccinated. It is a different vaccine than the shingles and may be available at district hospital level.

[BuddyDean]

Anyone have new info on Shingles vaccine?

[Thanyaburi Mac]

FYI, I asked Vibhavadi Hospital, they replied perhaps in a year.  It'll take some time to spread around the U.S., too.

 

Mac

 

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fda-approves-better-vaccine-against-painful-shingles-virus/

 

AP October 23, 2017, 12:27 PM

FDA approves better vaccine against painful shingles virus

This image provided by GlaxoSmithKline shows the company's Shingrix vaccine. The FDA has approved it to prevent painful shingles in people aged 50 or older. 

 GLAXOSMITHKLINE VIA AP

 

U.S. regulators have approved a new, more effective vaccine to prevent painful shingles, which is caused by the chickenpox virus.

Drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline said the Food and Drug Administration approved it late Friday. It will be the second shingles vaccine in the U.S. market. Merck launched the first one in 2006.

Studies paid for by Glaxo found it prevents shingles in about 90 percent of people. Merck's is about 50 percent effective.

Both versions are for adults 50 and older. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, though, recommends vaccination for those 60 or older, partly because it loses effectiveness over time.

Anyone who's had chickenpox — nearly everyone over 40 — harbors the varicella-zoster virus that causes the disease. The virus can resurface decades later, triggering painful sores on one side of the body. About 10 to 20 percent of those who get shingles also develop debilitating nerve pain that can last for months, even years.

About one-third of people who have had chickenpox get shingles. That's about 1 million Americans a year. But once someone has recovered from shingles, it rarely reoccurs.

Chickenpox was a very common childhood illness until a Merck vaccine was introduced two decades ago; it's now part of routine childhood shots.

GlaxoSmithKline PLC said the price of its shingles vaccine, called Shingrix, will be $280 for the required two shots. Merck & Co.'s one-shot Zostavax costs $223. Most insurance plans cover it.

The two vaccines are made differently. Glaxo's is genetically engineered and includes an ingredient that boosts effectiveness. In addition to preventing shingles, it also reduces the risk of nerve pain by nearly 90 percent. Glaxo studies also show it retains about 90 percent of its effectiveness for four years, and follow-up studies indicate it lasts years longer, according to Dr. Leonard Friedland, Glaxo's vaccines director for North America.

Merck's vaccine uses a live but weakened virus, so it can't be used by people with compromised immune systems. It reduces risk of shingles by half and risk of nerve pain by 67 percent, according to the CDC. One study found it doesn't prevent shingles after eight years.

More research is being done. Glaxo is testing its vaccine against Merck's. Meanwhile, Merck has been testing a different vaccine on cancer patients and people with compromised immune systems.

© 2017 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

 

 

 

[CaptHaddock]

Seems like Shingrix is worth the money:

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/10/health/shingrix-shingles-vaccine.html

[Langsuan Man]

1 hour ago, CaptHaddock said:

Seems like Shingrix is worth the money:

 

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/11/10/health/shingrix-shingles-vaccine.html

If you have ever had to endure Shingles, it is worth more than money for any chance to prevent it 

[BuddyDean]

Sounds great on paper, I just can't figure out why my Glaxo stock has been racheting downward.

[Langsuan Man]

33 minutes ago, BuddyDean said:

Sounds great on paper, I just can't figure out why my Glaxo stock has been racheting downward.

Because of the merger mania that is now spreading to health stocks:

Quote

GlaxoSmithKline PLC GSK, -1.31% shares plummeted 6% in extremely heavy midday trade Wednesday on concerns that the company's interest in Pfizer Inc.'sPFE, -0.06% over-the-counter business could put its dividend at risk. After being asked if she could give investors assurances that the potential deal would carry no dividend risk, Chief Executive Emma Walmsley did not exactly give those assurances. "We know the dividend matters to our investors. We intend and we do pay it now as a function of our free cash flow after investing in the necessary priorities to secure long-term growth for the company," 

source: https://www.marketwatch.com/story/glaxosmithkline-stock-plummets-6-after-concerns-about-dividend-risk-2017-10-25-12915434