WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - COVID-19 continues to pose a serious risk to cardiovascular health for upto three years after the infection, according to a study published in the American Heart Association's peer-reviewed journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology.
'We found a long-term cardiovascular health risk associated with COVID, especially among people with more severe COVID-19 cases that required hospitalization,' said lead study author James Hilser.
'This increased risk of heart attack and stroke continued three years after COVID-19 infection. Remarkably, in some cases, the increased risk was almost as high as having a known cardiovascular risk factor such as Type 2 diabetes or peripheral artery disease.'
The study analyzed medical data of 503,325 adults in the United Kingdom, aged 40 to 69 at the time of enrollment between 2006 and 2010. The data from the UK Biobank included over 11,000 people with a documented positive lab test for COVID-19 in 2020, nearly 3,000 of whom had been hospitalized for their infections.
This data was compared with that of more than 222,000 others who were not infected with COVID-19 during the same time period.
During the nearly three-year follow-up, the risk of heart attack, stroke and death was more than double in adults who had COVID-19, and nearly four times higher among adults hospitalized with the infection, compared to those with no history of COVID-19.
Moreover, people hospitalized with COVID-19, even those without cardiovascular disease or Type 2 diabetes, had a 21 percent higher risk of heart attack, stroke and death compared to people with cardiovascular disease but no COVID-19 infection.
'The results of our study highlight the long-term cardiovascular effects of COVID-19 infection. Given the increased risk of heart attack, stroke and death, the question is whether or not severe COVID-19 should be considered as another risk factor for CVD, much like Type 2 diabetes or peripheral artery disease, where treatment focused on CVD prevention may be valuable,' said co-senior study author Hooman Allayee.
'The results suggest that people with prior COVID infection may benefit from preventive care for cardiovascular disease.'
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