Herpes simplex virus type 1 and cognition in different stages of life

摘要

To the Editor—I read with interest the study by Tarter et al [1], who reported that herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) seropositivity was associated with impaired reading and visuospatial reasoning in children, impaired attention in middle-aged adults, and impaired immediate memory in older adults. They also found that cytomegalovirus (CMV) seropositivity was associated with slower coding speed and with impaired learning and recall among middle-aged adults in their adjusted analysis. I applaud the use of a US representative sample to investigate, perhaps for the first time, the relationship between the viral infections and cognitive impairment throughout different stages of life. However, while these findings are of public health importance, I am concerned that the study did not consider important covariates.