Heart Attack: Covid-19 infection can triple the risk of heart attack, new study affirms |

A sweeping new research published in the American Heart Health Association has raised a concerning link between covid-19 and flu, to an increased risk of heart attack and stroke. The American Heart Association researchers reviewed 155 high-quality studies and discovered that viral infections such as COVID-19, influenza, HIV, hepatitis C, and shingles were all associated with increased cardiovascular risk.“While it’s long been known that viruses like HPV or hepatitis B can cause cancer, our findings show that viral infections also play a role in cardiovascular disease,” said Dr. Kosuke Kawai, lead author and adjunct associate professor at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine.

Key highlights of the study

• The risk of a heart attack triples within the first few weeks after a Covid-19 infection.
• The risk of a heart attack quadruples in the month after a flu infection.

How covid can affect the heart

Many researches have found that covid infection directly damages the endothelium. According to a review article published in top pharmacology research journal APS, the virus behind COVID-19, SARS‑CoV‑2, can damage the blood vessels and thereby affect the heart. Since the heart and its blood supply depend on healthy vessels, damage to the endothelium can lead to a number of complications, such as:

• Impaired blood flow through coronary arteries and micro-vessels. This can reduce oxygen to the heart muscle.
• Increased clot formation in the vessels supplying the heart, which may lead to the risk of a heart attack.
• Chronic vascular dysfunction or scarring that may affect long-term heart health.
• Combined with inflammation and endothelial injury, this may trigger myocardial injury.

What can be done

Study lead Dr. Kawai said, “Preventive measures against viral infections, including vaccination, may play an important role in decreasing the risk of cardiovascular disease. Prevention is especially important for adults who already have cardiovascular disease or cardiovascular disease risk factors,”. The study findings also suggest that increased vaccination rates for COVID, influenza and shingles have the potential to reduce the overall rate of heart attacks and strokes.

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