Varicella Vaccine / 한양의대학술지

ABSTRACT

Recent issues in varicella vaccination Varicella is a highly infectious disease caused by the varicella zoster virus. The varicella vaccine was developed by Michiaki Takahashi in Japan in 1974. Despite the worldwide distribution of efficient vaccines, varicella vaccination policy is extremely variable from country to country. Although varicella vaccine is not currently recommended as an universal vaccination in Japan, Europe, and developing countries, it had been introduced into Korea in 1988 and 20 years have passed since its first use in Korea. Currently, the varicella vaccine has been used most extensively in the United States where routine a 2-dose vaccination program has been recently implemented for children. Recent the 2-dose schedule in the United States and the availability of combination measles-rubella-varicella vaccines may lead to future varicella vaccination policy changes in many countries. With this background, this article summarizes the current status of varicella vaccination policies worldwide and presents provisional updated recommendation of varicella vaccination in Korea.