Oct. 9, 2024 – New research shows that severe COVID-19 illness could possibly be a very important risk factor for heart attack and stroke – in addition to diabetes or heart disease. According to researchers on the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, the chance may persist for 3 years after infection.
The USC team hopes for theirs Study resultsreleased today, sparks discussions about preparedness for individuals who survive severe COVID infections. Perhaps, the researchers say, COVID must be considered an equivalent risk for heart disease as diabetes.
“If we treat diabetics with the drug cocktail that we give to patients with heart disease, should we give patients seriously ill with COVID-19 the same drug cocktail to prevent their first heart attack and stroke?” said lead study creator Hooman Allayee, PhD, Professor on the Keck School of Medicine of USC.
“Our data doesn’t mean cardiologists should start doing this right away,” Allayee said. “We want people to start thinking about it [severe COVID-19] This way and start talking about it.
The new study builds on extensive research linking viruses to heart problems. Have the flu may increase Their risk of heart attack increased sixfold in the first week after diagnosis. Previous studies suggest that COVID increases the risk of heart problems and stroke up to a year after infection. with or without Vaccination. A Study 2024 showed that the risk of death and many health outcomes, including cardiovascular complications, may decrease but do not disappear up to three years after a COVID hospitalization.
“This is an association that has existed in science for a long time,” he said Patricia Nguyen, MDan associate professor of cardiovascular medicine at Stanford University who was not involved within the study.
Allayee and his team wanted to review the long-term cardiovascular risks of COVID infection. But additionally they wondered how the guts risks related to severe COVID disease compare to those of heart disease or type 2 diabetes.
To discover, they analyzed data from the UK Biobank, a resource that comprises health, genetic and lifestyle data from half 1,000,000 UK residents. They compared the chance of heart complications in 10,000 adults who were infected with COVID in 2020, before the vaccines got here in the marketplace, and 200,000 adults who weren't infected during that period.
The researchers found that infection can double the chance of a heart attack, stroke or death from any cause for up to 3 years – even in people without heart disease. People hospitalized with COVID had a virtually 4 times higher risk of cardiovascular complications and death than those that were uninfected.
Blood type was also included of their evaluation. Existing research shows that non-O blood types (i.e. A, B or AB) have one increased risk Heart attack and blood type A possibly more vulnerable to a COVID infection. Knowing this, researchers wondered whether blood type may also have an effect on long-term cardiovascular outcomes.
They found a “multiplier effect,” said co-lead creator James Hilser, MPH, a doctoral student in biochemistry and molecular medicine at USC. Among those hospitalized with COVID, individuals with non-O blood types had a 65% higher risk of heart attack and stroke than individuals with type O blood.
The UK biobank lacked detailed details about vaccinations, including vaccination dates – necessary information for understanding how vaccinations might affect these risks, Allayee said. That's why the team decided to give attention to individuals who were infected between February and December 2020, before vaccines became available. Current research indicates that vaccination reduces your risk of heart attack and stroke for a minimum of six months.
“The data is likely to change whether you have been vaccinated or not. Not to mention the different variants,” said Allayee.
What it is best to know and what it is best to ask your doctor
If you've gotten COVID but haven't been hospitalized, don't panic — the risks are usually not similar to those of heart disease.
Still, it's important to adopt or maintain a healthy lifestyle. “Everyone should do this,” Nguyen said, “but especially people who may be more susceptible to cardiovascular disease if they have a virus.”
COVID can cause inflammation of plaque (a Fat accumulation (often called atherosclerosis) within the coronary arteries, increasing the chance of heart attack and stroke.
“If your risk of atherosclerotic heart disease is high because of your age [or] If you have high blood pressure or diabetes, you should lead a healthy lifestyle and take prescribed statins,” said Nguyen.
Despite vaccinations and boosters, individuals are still being hospitalized with COVID. The results are also relevant to their treatment, Allayee said. His uncle was hospitalized with the virus.
“I would tell him, 'Why don't you talk to your doctor?'” Allayee said.
If you're obese or have hypertension or cholesterol, you may ask your doctor about preventative cardiovascular medications corresponding to aspirin, a statin or antihypertensive medications, Allayee said.
“Hopefully doctors are starting to say, 'Maybe I should look at the patient's chart to see whether they had severe COVID or not and then think about how I'm going to assess their future cardiovascular health,'” he said.