AUTHOR=Zhang Xiaofei , Jiang Yalin , Qian Hui , Qu Xiangkun , Han Kexing 

TITLE=The association between Herpes simplex virus type 2 and asthma: A cross-sectional study from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999–2016

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Medicine

VOLUME=Volume 9 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/medicine/articles/10.3389/fmed.2022.943706

DOI=10.3389/fmed.2022.943706

ISSN=2296-858X

ABSTRACT=Abstract
Background: The association between Herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) infection, a common infectious disease that increases the incidence of multisystem diseases, and asthma was less well studied. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between HSV-2 infection and the prevalence of asthma.
Methods: We used data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 1999-2016 for analysis. The study population included was limited to those aged 20-45 years and contained complete information on HSV-2 infection and asthma. We calculated the prevalence of HSV-2, asthma, and HSV-2 combined with asthma separately. The association between HSV-2 infection and asthma was analysed using multiple logistic regression. We also performed stratified analyses to reduce bias and to find sensitive cohorts.
Results: The final 22528 participants were included in this study. The prevalence of HSV-2 infection tended to decrease over time (P for trend < 0.01) but the prevalence of asthma increased (P for trend < 0.01). The results of the analysis of participant characteristics indicated that the prevalence of HSV-2 infection was higher in asthmatics than in non-asthmatic participants. HSV-2 infection was positively associated with asthma (OR=1.15, 95% CI: 1.04 to 1.27). Stratified analysis suggested that this positive association was more pronounced in male, White race, 30 years ≤ age < 40 years, body mass index (BMI) ≥ 28 kg/m2, 1.39 ≤ ratio of family income to poverty (PIR) <3.49, and smoking participants.
Conclusions: There was a positive association between HSV-2 infection and asthma, and participants who were male, White race, 30 years ≤ age < 40 years, BMI ≥ 28 kg/m2, 1.39 ≤ PIR < 3.49, and smokers should receive more attention.