Ibtihal Ibrahim1, Hala Salah1, Hanan El Sayed1, Hader Mansour2,1, Ahmed Eissa1, Joel Wood2, Warda Fathi1, Salwa Tobar1, Ruben C Gur3, Raquel E Gur3, Faith Dickerson4, Robert H Yolken5, Wafaa El Bahaey1, Vishwajit Nimgaonkar2,6. 1. b Department of Psychiatry , Mansoura University School of Medicine , Mansoura , Egypt. 2. a Department of Psychiatry , University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic , Pittsburgh , PA , USA. 3. d Neuropsychiatry Section, Department of Psychiatry , University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine , Philadelphia , PA , USA. 4. e Department of Pediatrics , Johns Hopkins School of Medicine , Baltimore , MD , USA. 5. f Department of Pediatrics , Stanley Division of Developmental Neurovirology , Baltimore , MD , USA. 6. c Department of Human Genetics , Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh , PA , USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is associated with cognitive dysfunction in clinic-based studies. The risk could be attributed to factors such as antiviral medications, substance abuse, or coincidental infection. AIM: The aim was to evaluate cognitive function in relation to HCV antibody titers in a community-based sample of asymptomatic individuals at low risk for substance abuse. METHOD: Adults were ascertained from a community in Mansoura, Egypt, where HCV is endemic (n = 258). Cognitive performance was evaluated using the Arabic version of the Penn Computerized Neurocognitive Battery. Substance abuse and psychopathology were also assessed. Antibodies to HCV and Toxoplasma gondii (TOX), a common protozoan that can affect cognition, were estimated using serological IgG assays. RESULTS: The prevalence of HCV and TOX infection was 17.6% and 52.9%, respectively. HCV antibody titers were significantly associated with worse function in four cognitive tests for accuracy and three tests for speed, after adjusting for covariates (p < .05, beta coefficients, 2.1-3.2). TOX antibody titers were associated with impaired accuracy in one test. CONCLUSIONS: The association between HCV antibody titers and cognitive impairment is not mediated by antiviral treatment or substance abuse in this sample. Whether HCV has a causal role in the cognitive dysfunction should be investigated.
BACKGROUND:Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is associated with cognitive dysfunction in clinic-based studies. The risk could be attributed to factors such as antiviral medications, substance abuse, or coincidental infection. AIM: The aim was to evaluate cognitive function in relation to HCV antibody titers in a community-based sample of asymptomatic individuals at low risk for substance abuse. METHOD: Adults were ascertained from a community in Mansoura, Egypt, where HCV is endemic (n = 258). Cognitive performance was evaluated using the Arabic version of the Penn Computerized Neurocognitive Battery. Substance abuse and psychopathology were also assessed. Antibodies to HCV and Toxoplasma gondii (TOX), a common protozoan that can affect cognition, were estimated using serological IgG assays. RESULTS: The prevalence of HCV and TOXinfection was 17.6% and 52.9%, respectively. HCV antibody titers were significantly associated with worse function in four cognitive tests for accuracy and three tests for speed, after adjusting for covariates (p < .05, beta coefficients, 2.1-3.2). TOX antibody titers were associated with impaired accuracy in one test. CONCLUSIONS: The association between HCV antibody titers and cognitive impairment is not mediated by antiviral treatment or substance abuse in this sample. Whether HCV has a causal role in the cognitive dysfunction should be investigated.
Entities:
Keywords:
Cognition; Computerized Neurocognitive Battery; Hepatitis C virus; Toxoplasma
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