"The herpes https zoster vaccine https better known as the shingles vaccine https and recommended for adults  and older cuts the risk of getting the painful disease by  new research finds. Compared to childhood vaccines https people would probably think  is not too impressive because many childhood vaccines https are in the range of  to  effective says researcher Hung Fu Tseng PhD MPH a research scientist at Kaiser Permanente Southern California. However he tells WebMD the  risk reduction is pretty high compared to other adult vaccines. Getting the vaccine makes it less likely that adults will get the painful rash https that can occur when the varicella zoster virus https which causes childhood chickenpox reactivates to cause shingles https_assetscontrolled_contenthealthwisemajorshinglescause_major_aa.xml. The associated pain can last months or even years. About a million episodes of shingles https sometimes debilitating occur in the U.S. annually Tseng says. The new study is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Another new study published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine finds that by  less than  of U.S. adults aged  and older had gotten the vaccine which has been available just since . Continue Reading Below Shingles Vaccine The Numbers Tseng and his colleagues evaluated the risk of shingles in  members of the Kaiser Permanente Southern California health plan https who got the vaccine from Jan.   through Dec.   and the risk in another  health plan https members in the same age brackets who did not get the vaccine. The findings  Among those vaccinated there were . cases per  people per year.  Among those not vaccinated there were  cases per  people per year. The risk reduction was similar in men and women and in different racial groups the researchers found and in people who had chronic diseases such as diabetes https Certain people should not get the vaccine Tseng says including people with a compromised immune system and certain cancers. In a previous study side effects were minor such as redness and pain at the injection site. The new study was funded internally by Kaiser but Tseng reports getting research funding from Merck for previous vaccine research. Shingles Vaccine Not a Strong Sell In the second study looking at the rate of vaccination CDC researchers evaluated data from the  National Health Interview Survey finding only . of people  and older had gotten the vaccine. After being licensed by the FDA in  the vaccine was recommended in  for people over  by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices which provides guidance on vaccines. In a previous study researchers found that just . of adults in that age group had gotten the vaccine in . Of those who contract herpes zoster  to  develop the painful syndrome known as postherpetic neuralgia which can be resistant to treatment the researchers write. Among the barriers to vaccination according to the CDC researchers may be lack of availability and the stringent storage and handling requirements for the vaccine. Some doctors may not be aware of the new recommendation they say. Shingles Vaccine Second Opinion Vaccine expense is another barrier for some says Peter Galier MD attending physician and former chief of staff at Santa MonicaUCLA Medical Center and Orthopaedic Hospital Santa Monica Calif. and associate professor of medicine University of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine. Not all plans cover the vaccine cost says Galier who reviewed the studies for WebMD. Once patients learn about it most are agreeable he finds. Everybody wants it because they have heard all the horror stories he says. In his practice Galier says he often treats patients who go through a dramatic stress such as a death in the family and then come down with shingles. The immune system has a certain amount of energy and ability to keep disease in check he says. But substantial life stress may be too much and the virus may reactivate he says. Recently a patient with shingles whom he cared for told him she had left her job under bad circumstances just three weeks before the rash https developed. He finds that kind of scenario common he says."