One in nine Americans ages 65 and over had Alzheimer’s disease in 2022, and countless others were indirectly affected as caregivers, health care providers and taxpayers. There is currently no cure – available treatments primarily focus on prevention by encouraging protective factors, such as exercise and healthy diet, and reducing aggravating factors, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
One of these aggravating factors is viral infections. Researchers have identified that certain viruses such as herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1, which causes cold sores), varicella zoster virus (VZV, which causes chickenpox and shingles) and SARS-CoV-2 (which causes COVID-19) can lead to a higher risk of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia following infection.
