Introduction: In this nested case-control study, we investigated if antiviral treatment given prior to onset of Alzheimer's disease (AD) could influence incident AD.
Methods: From a large population-based cohort study in northern Sweden, 262 individuals that later developed AD were compared to a non-AD matched control group with respect to prescriptions of herpes antiviral treatment. All included subjects were herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV1) carriers and the matching criteria were age, sex, apolipoprotein E genotype (ε4 allele carriership), and study sample start year.
Results: Among those who developed AD, 6 prescriptions of antivirals were found, compared to 20 among matched controls. Adjusted for length of follow-up, a conditional logistic regression indicated a difference in the risk for AD development between groups (odds ratio for AD with an antiviral prescription 0.287, P = .018).
Discussion: Antiviral treatment might possibly reduce the risk for later development of HSV1-associated AD.
Keywords: Alzheimer's disease; antiviral treatment; apolipoprotein E gene; dementia; herpes simplex; major neurocognitive disorder; nested case‐control study.
© 2021 The Authors. Alzheimer's & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Alzheimer's Association.