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Transparent access to VAERS data for informed decision-making. We present the data as-is, with appropriate context and disclaimers.

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Data source: VAERS (Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System)

Data through 2026 · Updated quarterly

Built by TheDataProject.ai · © 2026 VaccineWatch

Important: VAERS accepts reports of adverse events following vaccination. For any given report, there is no certainty that the reported event was caused by the vaccine. Reports may contain information that is incomplete, inaccurate, coincidental, or unverifiable. Most reports to VAERS are voluntary, which means they are subject to biases. This data cannot be used to determine if vaccines cause or contribute to adverse events.

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Important: VAERS reports alone cannot determine if a vaccine caused an adverse event. Reports may contain incomplete, inaccurate, or unverified information. Correlation does not equal causation.

  1. Home
  2. Vaccines
  3. Zoster Live (Zostavax)
  4. Varicella
Zoster Live (Zostavax)×Varicella

Varicella Reports for Zoster Live (Zostavax)

#133 most reported symptom for this vaccine

476
Reports
1
Deaths
15
Hospitalizations
0.21
Mortality Rate
%
3.2
Hosp. Rate
%

Varicella and Zoster Live (Zostavax)

Varicella has been reported 476 times in association with Zoster Live (Zostavax) vaccination in VAERS. This represents 0.3% of all 140,312 reports for this vaccine.

Among these reports, 1 mentioned death (0.21%) and 15 involved hospitalization (3.2%).

Varicella is the #133 most frequently reported symptom for Zoster Live (Zostavax) out of 2827 total symptoms.

Disclaimer: VAERS reports describe events that occurred after vaccination but do not establish that the vaccine caused the event. Many reported symptoms may be coincidental or related to underlying conditions.

What This Means

Seeing 476 reports of Varicella after Zoster Live (Zostavax) vaccination may seem alarming, but context is critical. With 140,312 total reports for this vaccine (representing many millions of doses), Varicella appears in only 0.3% of reports.

The mortality rate among these reports is very low at 0.21%, suggesting most cases are non-fatal.

Important Context

•Association, not causation: These reports show Varicella occurred after vaccination, not that the vaccine caused it.
•Background rates: Varicella may occur naturally at baseline rates in the population, unrelated to vaccination.
•Anyone can report: VAERS accepts reports from anyone — patients, parents, healthcare providers — without requiring medical verification.
•Denominator missing: VAERS counts reports, not rates per dose. Without knowing how many doses were given, raw counts can be misleading. Learn more →

Similarly Ranked Symptoms

Visual impairment490 reportsIncorrect route of product administration478 reportsEar pain466 reportsGuillain-Barre syndrome466 reports

Quick Facts

Reports:476
Deaths:1
Hospitalizations:15
% of Vaccine:0.3%
Rank:#133 of 2827

Related Pages

Zoster Live (Zostavax) OverviewVaricella (All Vaccines)Why Raw Numbers MisleadTop Symptoms Analysis

Data Source

This data comes from the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), jointly managed by CDC and FDA.