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Altered lymphocyte profiles and herpes zoster infections in patients with multiple sclerosis on natalizumab.

Alexandra BalshiNova ManningJohn DempseySachin KumbarUrsela BaberJacob A Sloane
Published in: Multiple sclerosis (Houndmills, Basingstoke, England) (2024)
Cases of herpes zoster (HZ) in patients with MS on natalizumab (NTZ) have been documented. In this study, we assessed lymphocyte subsets in NTZ-treated patients with HZ compared to matched controls without HZ. Twenty unvaccinated patients developed HZ while on NTZ for an incidence rate of 12.3 per 1000 patient-years. These patients had lower CD8+% and higher CD4+:CD8+ ratios ( p ⩽ 0.01) than non-HZ matched controls. Two patients with relapsing-remitting MS developed HZ twice while on NTZ. These findings underscore the importance of pre-NTZ HZ vaccination due to potential HZ risk.
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