Trend in the Numbers of Hospitalized Patients With Varicella, Herpes Zoster, and Ischemic Stroke in Japanese Individuals <20 Years of Age Before and After Implementation of Universal Varicella Vaccination.

Several studies have shown an association between varicella-zoster virus infection and ischemic stroke. We analyzed the trends in the numbers of patients with varicella, herpes zoster and ischemic stroke before and after the universal vaccination program using a Japanese database of hospitalized patients. The number of patients with varicella decreased but those of herpes zoster and ischemic stroke did not change.