Recent studies have shown that childhood brain infections may considerable affects on a person in adulthood. The results were presented at the World Congress of Neuroscience in Melbourne, Australia, by Krister Kristensson .The studies were carried on by Kristensson and her colleagues of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden. Statistics were taken for around 1.2million individuals born in Sweden between 1973 and 1985.
It was concluded that those children who have had mumps with complications regarding inflammation of brain before the age of 12 have an increased risk of schizophrenia in adulthood. The risk factor can be as high as 3 times the normal. Studies have also shown that children affected by cytomegalovirus infection in their childhood, may have the factor of increased risk of schizophrenia around 17 times more.
On the other hand, other diseases like bacterial or fungal infections etc, which do not invade the brain, have not been found to have any affect on the brain afterwards.
Courtesy: New Scientist