Skip to main content
Journal cover image

Racial differences in the occurrence of herpes zoster.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Schmader, K; George, LK; Burchett, BM; Pieper, CF; Hamilton, JD
Published in: J Infect Dis
March 1995

The purpose of this study was to determine if there are racial differences in the occurrence of herpes zoster (shingles). The study population was the Duke Established Populations for Epidemiologic Studies of the Elderly, a probability sample of community-dwelling persons > 64 years old in North Carolina. Interviewers administered a comprehensive health survey to the participants that included questions about lifetime occurrence of shingles. Of the 3206 subjects, 316 (9.9%) had had zoster: 81 (4.5%) of 1754 blacks and 235 (16.1%) of 1452 whites had had shingles (P < .0001). After controlling for age, cancer, and demographic factors, blacks remained one-fourth as likely as whites (adjusted odds ratio 0.25, 95% confidence interval 0.18-0.35; P = .0001) to have experienced zoster. In summary, blacks had a significantly lower risk of developing herpes zoster than whites, a new finding in herpes zoster epidemiology.

Duke Scholars

Altmetric Attention Stats
Dimensions Citation Stats

Published In

J Infect Dis

DOI

ISSN

0022-1899

Publication Date

March 1995

Volume

171

Issue

3

Start / End Page

701 / 704

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • White People
  • Microbiology
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Herpes Zoster
  • Female
  • Black People
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Aged
  • Age Factors
 

Citation

APA
Chicago
ICMJE
MLA
NLM
Schmader, K., George, L. K., Burchett, B. M., Pieper, C. F., & Hamilton, J. D. (1995). Racial differences in the occurrence of herpes zoster. J Infect Dis, 171(3), 701–704. https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/171.3.701
Schmader, K., L. K. George, B. M. Burchett, C. F. Pieper, and J. D. Hamilton. “Racial differences in the occurrence of herpes zoster.J Infect Dis 171, no. 3 (March 1995): 701–4. https://doi.org/10.1093/infdis/171.3.701.
Schmader K, George LK, Burchett BM, Pieper CF, Hamilton JD. Racial differences in the occurrence of herpes zoster. J Infect Dis. 1995 Mar;171(3):701–4.
Schmader, K., et al. “Racial differences in the occurrence of herpes zoster.J Infect Dis, vol. 171, no. 3, Mar. 1995, pp. 701–04. Pubmed, doi:10.1093/infdis/171.3.701.
Schmader K, George LK, Burchett BM, Pieper CF, Hamilton JD. Racial differences in the occurrence of herpes zoster. J Infect Dis. 1995 Mar;171(3):701–704.
Journal cover image

Published In

J Infect Dis

DOI

ISSN

0022-1899

Publication Date

March 1995

Volume

171

Issue

3

Start / End Page

701 / 704

Location

United States

Related Subject Headings

  • White People
  • Microbiology
  • Male
  • Humans
  • Herpes Zoster
  • Female
  • Black People
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Aged
  • Age Factors