Background
Several observational studies suggest that herpes zoster (HZ) may increase the risk
of stroke, but the results are inconsistent. Our study was designed to assess the
association between HZ and the risk of stroke through a meta-analysis of cohort studies.
Methods
The electronic databases PubMed and EMBASE were searched from inception to May 31,
2016 to identify relevant cohort studies that assess the risk of stroke in patients
with HZ. Reference lists were also reviewed to identify potential studies. The random-effects
model and fixed-effects model were used to calculate the summary relative risks (RRs)
with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).
Results
Six cohort studies (251,076 HZ patients and 8462 cases of stroke) were identified
in the study. The result showed that HZ was significantly correlated with increased
risk of stroke, and the pooled RR was 1.36 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.10, 1.67)
(P = .004). In the subgroup analysis, the significant association was observed except
for stroke type (hemorrhage group). In the sensitivity analysis, excluding 1 study,
the pooled RR was 1.45 (95% CI: 1.17, 1.80) (P = .001) for HZ, and 4.42 (95% CI: 2.75, 7.11) (P = .000) for herpes zoster ophthalmicus. Considerable heterogeneity was observed in
our study.
Conclusion
Our study furnishes evidence of a positive association between HZ and the risk of
stroke.
Key Words
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: October 31, 2016
Accepted:
September 13,
2016
Received:
August 18,
2016
Identification
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jstrokecerebrovasdis.2016.09.021
Copyright
© 2017 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
