Higher risk of heart failure and stroke even after COVID-19 recovery
A recent large study based in the US has found significantly increased risks of cardiovascular complications in former patients of COVID-19. According to Ziyad Al-Aly of the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), St. Louis Health Care System and Washington University, the risks remained high even in people who had mild COVID-19 and were not hospitalised.
VA researchers found COVID-19 survivors had a 63% higher risk for heart attack, a 69% higher risk for problematic irregular heart rhythm, a 52% higher risk of stroke, a 72% higher risk of heart failure, as well as nearly three times higher risk of a potentially fatal blood clot in the lungs.
The increased risks among COVID-19 survivors were evident in people regardless of gender, age, race, people with and without diabetes and with and without kidney disease, as well as smokers and nonsmokers.
“It really spared no one,” Al-Aly said. “People with COVID-19 should pay attention to their health and seek medical care if they experience symptoms like chest pain, chest pressure, palpitation, swelling in the legs, etc.”
The study compared rates of new cardiovascular problems between three groups: 153,760 individuals infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus before vaccines were available, 5.6 million people who were not infected with the virus, and another 5.9 million people whose health data was collected prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Risks were evaluated based on results averaging one year after survivors’ recovery from the acute phase of infection.
Category: Features, Health alert
