Hospices Civils de Lyon Says Vaccination Cuts Infarction Risk and Dementia Risk From Zona

Dr Anne CONRAD, infectiologue à l'hôpital de la Croix-Rousse, says that "des études récentes montrent que se vacciner contre la grippe diminue le risque de faire un infarctus."

“Although most Americans have eschewed seasonal COVID-19 vaccines, the updated shots continue to show significant protection against cardiovascular disease, especially for those over age 75 and those with underlying medical conditions”

Ars Technica

In the same interview, she explains that having the flu "va induire une réaction inflammatoire intense qui peut abîmer votre cœur, vos vaisseaux," while vaccination "va permettre de diminuer ce risque."

Ars Technica

The Hospices Civils de Lyon segment also points to a potential cognitive benefit, stating that "le vaccin contre le zona pourrait réduire le risque de démence chez les personnes âgées."

It frames vaccination as a lifelong prevention tool, saying that at different ages it targets infections such as méningites, coqueluche, rougeole, and later risks like grippe, Covid-19, infections à pneumocoque, and zona.

The piece adds that vaccines are "des produits de santé rigoureusement contrôlés" and that after authorization they continue to be surveillés, with serious adverse effects described as "extrêmement rares."

A study published in JAMA Internal Medicine, as described by MedPage Today, followed over 1 million veterans who received the 2024-2025 COVID vaccine and found vaccine effectiveness of 37.7% (95% CI 18.2-54.9) for preventing COVID-associated MACE.

MedPage Today reports that the study’s lead investigator, Ziyad Al-Aly, MD, said the benefit extended to specific endpoints, including 57.9% effectiveness against COVID-associated cardiovascular death (95% CI 25.2-78.2).

Bioengineer.org

STAT’s coverage of the same research says Al-Aly led a cohort where vaccinated veterans had a roughly 38% lower risk of Covid-associated major cardiovascular events over eight months.

STAT also quotes Al-Aly explaining that people who feel briefly unwell may not test for Covid, and that "What that really means is that those [events] are actually likely related to SARS-CoV-2."

In the Ars Technica summary of the VA data, the study used electronic medical record data from 1,039,659 patients in the VA’s St. Louis Health Care System, with 349,085 receiving both shots and 690,574 receiving just the flu shot.

Ars Technica says the cardiovascular protection was strongest among those over age 75 and those with underlying health conditions, and it describes the 2024–2025 vaccine as continuing to protect against COVID-19-associated “major adverse cardiovascular events” (MACE).

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STAT adds that Al-Aly stressed Covid is still prevalent and that "Much of it is only unrecognized, leading to heart problems," because people are not testing.

In the same STAT piece, former FDA Commissioner Robert Califf is quoted arguing that "Taken together, these reports offer convincing evidence that the cardiovascular benefits of vaccination for COVID-19 are much greater than the risks," as he wrote in an accompanying editorial.

The MedPage Today report also notes that the study’s vaccine effectiveness against COVID-associated MACE was statistically significant only in those older than 75 years, with a vaccine effectiveness of 50.7% (95% CI 31.8-65.6).

Meanwhile, the Hospices Civils de Lyon interview frames vaccination as a preventive act that protects "votre cœur, vos vaisseaux, votre cerveau," and it urges people to "faites-vous vacciner" after discussing it with a professional de santé.