Persistent COVID infection may raise risk of heart attacks and strokes: Health Specialists

According to leading health specialists on Monday, a prolonged COVID infection, even if moderate, may influence and has the ability to raise the incidence of heart attacks and brain strokes in patients.

A research indicated a 60% increase in the incidence of heart-related illnesses and neurological diseases, according to Dr Ashok Seth, Chairman of Fortis Escorts Heart Institute.

“There is a significant data from the west that has discovered that over a period of a year and more than a hundreds and thousands of patients research, there was a 60% rise in the incidences of heart attacks or even strokes compared to the normal population at the same period of time,” Dr Seth told ANI. So we are pretty sure that COVID, even if modest, can impact patients for up to a year and cause an increase in heart attacks and strokes.”

“We know that Covid itself causes increased incidences of strokes due to clotting in the acute stages, and that inflammation of the arteries also increases episodes of clots in the brain, causing strokes and clots in the lungs.” However, we are concerned about the long-term consequences. True, individuals with severe COVID had poorer one-year outcomes, but even those with modest COVID can have an elevated risk of heart attack,” he noted.

The expert advised individuals not to ignore symptoms and to seek medical attention as soon as possible.

“The first and most critical step is for all COVID sufferers to not disregard their symptoms.” “Even if you’ve healed from minor COVID, it’s crucial to have a checkup if you feel breathless, if you experience chest pain, if you feel discomfort or palpitations,” he added.

Dr. Setha went on to say that patients who have pre-existing conditions should get their hearts checked regularly.

“Secondly, we say that those who have COVID with multiple risk factors, who are known to have pre-existing heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, it is important for them to understand to get a check-up done like ECG, Eco cardiogram which tells about the functioning of the heart and ECG tells about any palpitations,” he explained.

“Third, for individuals who desire to return to an active lifestyle or those who exercised before to covid and claim to be recovered. “We always recommend obtaining a cardiac exam and doing mild to moderate exercise in a graded manner for the following three months before returning to a full physical hard exercise routine,” the doctor noted.

COVID has developed through time to be a multisystem illness affecting the brain and neurological system, according to Dr Padma Srivastava, Professor and Sr neurologist, AIIMS, Delhi.

“We’ve learned in the last two years that Covid is a multisystem illness that affects more than simply the lungs.” As a result, it involves the brain and neurological system. We also now know that there is a specific entity known as long Covid, which indicates that there are traits that appear and continue three months after Covid infection. “There is a lot of study going on all across the world,” she remarked.

“If I had to break it down, we have infection, inflammation, and the involvement of more than one of the brain, neurological system, muscles, and peripheral central nervous system during Covid. There are immediate acute circumstances in the brain, such as a brain attack or stroke, and then there is brain inflammation during Covid “Dr. Srivastava said.

According to the expert, study on these topics is now happening.

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“There is study being conducted on the possibility that these people would get dementia in the years after a covid infection. Will they get Parkinson’s-like symptoms to that extent? At the moment, there is a lot of multi-faceted study going on,” she said.

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