COVID-19 can cause long-term damage to heart: 3 ways coronavirus can affect cardiac health
There’s still a lot to learn about the long-term repercussions of COVID-19. Yet, researchers have warned that the novel coronavirus can have devastating effects on the entire body and not just the lungs - the organ primarily targeted by the SARS-CoV-2. According to a new study, COVID-19 disease can have lasting impacts on the heart.
Studies have shown that people with underlying health conditions, including heart disease, have a higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19. The study published in the peer-reviewed journal JAMA Cardiology found that as many as 78 per cent of coronavirus patients monitored developed heart abnormalities months after they had already recovered from the disease.
78% COVID-19 patients develop a heart condition
For the study, researchers analysed data from about 100 COVID-19 recovered patients from the University Hospital, Frankfurt’s Covid-19 registry between April and June 2020. Cardiac magnetic resonance imaging showed cardiac involvement in 78 per cent of COVID-19 patients, irrespective of pre-existing conditions, severity an overall course of the acute illness, and the time from the original diagnosis.
The study also showed ongoing myocardial inflammation in 60 per cent of recovered patients. About one-third of patients required hospitalisation, whereas rest recovered from home. The findings indicate the need for the ongoing investigation of the long-term implications of COVID-19 on cardiovascular health.
How COVID-19 affects your cardiac health
- ACE-2 receptors: A report in the John Hopkins Medicine, quoting cardiologist Erin Michos, MD, MHS, stated that the coronavirus can damage the heart in different ways. Dr Michos explained that the cells in the lungs and heart are covered with protein molecules called angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, or ACE-2, the doorway the SARS-Cov-2 virus uses to enter cells and multiply. This means the coronavirus can directly infect cells in the cardiovascular system.
- Underlying heart conditions: In most cases, patients with a pre-existing coronary artery disease are more likely to develop severe complications due to COVID-19. For instance, a study involving more than 72,000coronavirus patients found that about 22 per cent of patients who succumbed to COVID-19 disease had cardiovascular comorbidities.
- Medications: It has been shown that experimental medications use to treat COVID-19 can put patients at risk. With no specific drug or vaccine available for COVID-19, doctors are experimenting with different therapies to treat the disease. A study led by Shuyang Zhang, a cardiology professor at Peking Union Medical College Hospital Beijing, China, found that certain medications such as nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), antiviral drugs, and glucocorticoids being administered to COVID-19 patients can exacerbate underlying heart issues, which can have fatal outcomes.
The bottom line
COVID-19 primarily considered a respiratory illness can have severe consequences, including cardiac issues. While scientists and health researchers are making every effort they could to better understand and deal with the dreaded disease, recent studies have revealed a few mechanisms as to why the SARS-CoV-2 virus causes damage to the heart. More research is required to figure out exactly how COVID-19 affects the heart, which patients are at a higher chance of developing cardiac issues, and what can be done to reduce the risk.