Covid Survivors are 60% More Likely to Suffer a Heart Attack

Covid survivors are at a 63% increased risk of having a heart attack within a year — regardless of their age or how ill they were, a major study suggests. American researchers looked at medical reports of more than 150,000 infected people and compared them to a control group of 11.5million who had not tested positive.

The risk of heart failure, heart disease and strokes was ‘noticeably’ higher in the 12 months after catching the virus. Those who had beat Covid were 55% more likely to suffer a heart complication compared to the uninfected. The Washington University researchers fear Covid will lead to millions more heart problems in the coming years.

They estimate the virus has already triggered 15million extra cardiovascular cases worldwide. During an infection, the virus attacks the body’s cells, which can cause damage to heart tissue and the immune system, which the researchers suspect triggers heart problems.

The study, published in Nature Medicine, shows heart problems were even spotted among people who had a mild infection and were previously healthy.   They were compared against a control group of 11.5million people who had not been infected. The participants were followed for 11.5 months, roughly. The overall risk of a heart complication was 55% higher but varied for different conditions.