COVID-19 and heart problems
Dr Patil explains the relationship between the infectious disease and cardiovascular conditions
So when someone catches the virus , the list of potential heart-related problems is lengthy
The emergence of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 , officially known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 ( SARS- CoV-2 ), is posing an unprecedented challenge to the global healthcare community .
Respiratory conditions , from a mild flu-like illness to potentially lethal acute respiratory distress syndrome or fulminant pneumonia , are the dominant clinical manifestations of COVID-19 . But it ’ s not just a lung disease , as it can affect cells throughout the body . It enters them through an enzyme called ACE2 , ( angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 ), which is found on all sorts of cell surfaces in the body – including the lungs , heart , brain , gastrointestinal tract , and the lining of blood vessels . This allows the virus to spread throughout the body , resulting in a growing number of cardiovascular and other manifestations of the disease .
However , much like any other respiratory tract infection , pre-existing cardiovascular disease ( CVD ) and cardiovascular risk factors enhance vulnerability to COVID-19 . Conversely , COVID-19 can worsen underlying CVD and even precipitate new cardiac complications . According to the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ),
Dr Ruhikesh S Patil
COVID-19 can affect a variety of cells throughtout the body
COVID-19 patients with underlying conditions such as cardiovascular disease are six times more likely to be hospitalised and 12 times more likely to die from COVID-19 than patients without any chronic health problems .
About 1 in 3 people with COVID-19 has CVD , making it the most common underlying health condition . This means that people with underlying heart conditions are more likely to show symptoms of the infection or to have a more severe infection than others , which warrants that they take general preventive measures like social distancing , hand washing , properly wearing masks , and avoiding social gatherings . They need to follow these practices more judiciously until significant numbers of peoples are vaccinated .
We now know that the virus damages the body in many ways – by cytokine storm caused by an overwhelming immune response to the infection , inflammation to tissue endothelium , direct invasion of tissue , and , not least , by triggering blood clots .
So when someone catches the virus , the list of potential heart-related problems is lengthy , including heart attacks , myocarditis or inflammation of heart
62 JUNE 2021 GlobalHealthAndTravel . com