In the latest Vaccine Smarts column by UTMB’s Dr. Richard Rupp and Bridget Hawkins: Shingles is not like most other vaccine-preventable diseases. Most vaccines prevent illness by stopping germs from invading the body. In the case of shingles, the virus is already inside of us. The virus that causes shingles is the same one that causes chickenpox. After having had chickenpox, the virus remains in some of the nerve roots. If a person’s immunity to chickenpox begins to decline, the virus comes down the nerves and infects the overlying skin causing the blistering rash known as shingles. The vaccine works by boosting the immune system.