Herpes zoster in older adults: Impact on carbon footprint in the United States

ABSTRACT

We provide estimates for (I) annual herpes zoster (HZ) cases, (II) carbon costs related to healthcare utilization, and (III) annual carbon emissions due to HZ among ≥50 years of age (YOA) United States (US) population. We estimated the annual number of HZ cases in the US based on available incidence data and demographic data of individuals ≥50 YOA. Both the healthcare resource utilization (HCRU) associated with HZ cases and the unit carbon dioxide equivalent (i.e. CO₂e) costs associated with each type of HCRU in the US were estimated based on literature and studies available online. The carbon footprint associated with HZ annually among US adults ≥50 YOA was estimated by multiplying the unit carbon estimates by the HCRU. In the US population aged ≥50 YOA in 2020 (i.e. approximately 118 million), approximately 1.1 million cases of HZ occur annually assuming no vaccination. Based on 2 sources of HCRU the average kgCO₂e per HZ patient ranged from 61.0 to 97.6 kgCO₂e, with values by age group ranging from 40.9 kgCO₂e in patients aged 50–59 to 195.9 kgCO₂e in patients ≥80 YOA. The total annual HZ associated carbon ranged between 67,000 and 107,000 tons of CO₂e in the US population aged ≥50 YOA. The impact of HZ on carbon footprint in the US results in considerable greenhouse gas (GHG)emissions. Assuming no vaccination, the burden of HZ is projected to rise over the coming years with the aging populations consequently worsening its impact on GHG emissions. (Figure 1)

KEYWORDS:

• Herpes zoster
• healthcare resource
• environmental sustainability
• climate change

Acknowledgments

The authors would also like to thank the Business & Decision Life Sciences platform for editorial assistance and manuscript coordination.

Disclosure statement

DC, JB and SW are employed by/hold shares in GSK. JB declares participation on a Data Safety Monitoring Board/Advisory Board and financial services from GSK, outside of the submitted work. IC is an employee of Carbon Trust, who was engaged by GSK to complete part of the work related to this manuscript. All authors declare no other financial and non-financial relationships and activities.

Role of the sponsor

GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals SA funded this study (VEO-000026) and took in charge all costs associated with the development and publication of this manuscript.

Author contributions

DC, JB and SW were involved in the conception and/or the design of the study and participated in the collection/generation of the study data. All authors had full access to the data and gave approval before submission. All authors agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved. The work described was carried out in accordance with the recommendations of the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors for conduct, reporting, editing, and publication of scholarly work in medical journals.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed on the publisher’s website at https://doi.org/10.1080/21645515.2024.2335722.

Additional information

Funding

GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals SA funded this study [VEO-000026].