Investigating the association between cataract patients and the risk of herpes zoster in a cohort study

Abstract Objective This cohort study aimed to elucidate whether cataract patients are at an increased risk of herpes zoster in Taiwan. Methods A cohort of cataract patients, aged 20–84 years, was assembled from electronic health records of Taiwan National Health Insurance Program spanning a period of eight years (2013–2020). A non-cataract group matched for sex, age, and comorbidities was also identified from the same database. The incidence rate of herpes zoster within the follow-up period was calculated between the two groups. The risk of herpes zoster was compared between the two groups using a Cox proportional hazards model, adjusting for potential confounders. Results The study included 1,299,685 individuals in the cataract group. The mean age was 64 years old and about 43.9% of study subjects were male. The non-cataract group had similar numbers of study subjects and comparable distributions in terms of sex and age. The incidence rate of herpes zoster was 10.84 per 1000 person-years in the cataract group and 6.36 per 1000 person-years in the non-cataract group (incidence rate ratio = 1.71, 95% CI = 1.69–1.72). After adjusting for potential confounders, the hazard ratio was 1.71 for herpes zoster in individuals with cataract when compared to those without cataract (95%CI = 1.69–1.73). Conclusion Our cohort study reveals that cataract patients are at an increased risk of developing herpes zoster. Our findings highlight the importance of considering the increased susceptibility to herpes zoster in cataract patients and the potential benefits of preventive measures such as vaccination.