Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Outpatient Visit-Based Frequency Trends of Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus.
Uveitis complicating herpes zoster ophthalmicus became much more common after the pandemic began.
Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Outpatient Visit-Based Frequency Trends of Herpes Zoster Ophthalmicus.
Herpes zoster ophthalmicus (herpes zoster ophthalmicus) is a vision-threatening disease, yet the long-term impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on its relative frequency and ocular complication profile remains insufficiently understood.
This retrospective observational study aimed to quantitatively evaluate the pandemic's influence on the long-term relative frequency trends of herpes zoster ophthalmicus and its ocular complications.
We analyzed 15 years of clinical data from January 2011 to June 2025 at a single institution in Japan.
Share of shingles-related eye infections with uveitis nearly doubled post-pandemic.
Interrupted time series analysis was employed to distinguish immediate level changes from long-term trend changes in disease relative frequency following the pandemic's onset in early 2020.
While the time series analysis indicated no immediate surge in the relative frequency of herpes zoster ophthalmicus at the pandemic's start, it revealed a highly significant acceleration in the long-term increasing trend of herpes zoster ophthalmicus cases.
The pronounced increase in cases among older adults underscores the critical importance of proactive herpes zoster vaccination and enhanced ophthalmic triage to prevent permanent vision loss in the post-pandemic era.