Keywords: Herpes zoster, shingles vaccine, family physicians, primary health care, adult immunization

Aim:

This study aims to evaluate the knowledge levels and attitudes of family physicians regarding Herpes Zoster (HZ) and HZ vaccination and to identify factors associated with vaccine recommendation behavior.

Method:

A cross-sectional, descriptive study was conducted between October 2025 and January 2026 among 170 family physicians working in family health centers in Tekirdağ, Türkiye. Data were collected via a structured questionnaire assessing sociodemographics, clinical knowledge of HZ, and attitudes toward vaccination. Statistical analysis included Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis, Spearman correlation, logistic regression, and ROC analysis.

Results:

The mean knowledge score was 7.4 ± 1.6 (out of 10), and the mean attitude score was 28.2±5.0 (out of 35). While 57.1% of participants showed highly supportive attitudes, only 53.5% reported recommending the HZ vaccine to patients. Specialist status and having over five years of medical experience were significantly associated with higher knowledge scores (p < 0.05). Knowledge levels, history of encountering HZ complications, and personal/relative disease experience were independent predictors of positive attitudes. ROC analysis demonstrated that attitude scores predicted vaccine recommendation behavior with high accuracy. (AUC = 0.968).

Conclusions:

Family physicians possess adequate basic clinical knowledge of HZ but lack specific awareness regarding vaccine applicability in immunocompromised groups and disease transmission. Targeted educational programs are essential to bridge these knowledge gaps and strengthen HZ immunization practices in primary care.