Merck wins FDA, EMEA approval for Zostavax

Merck has won FDA and European approval for Zostavax, its vaccine against shingles. The agency called the vaccine an important tool in the fight against a chronic disease accompanied by great pain. In trials, Zostavax reduced the incidence of shingles among people aged 60 to 69 by 64 percent. The effectiveness of the vaccine dropped significantly past 70. The approval marks Merck's continuing success in the vaccine field. It recently won approval for the vaccine RotaTeq to protect infants from rotavirus and is expecting an FDA decision soon on its vaccine against cervical cancer.

- read this Wall Street Journal article on Merck (sub. req.)