COVID-19 is a risk factor for acute cardiovascular events

A Lancet study has suggested COVID-19 as an independent risk factor for acute myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke. A significant increase in the incidence of acute cardiovascular events was observed in the first week after onset of Covid-19. When Day 0 (day of exposure) was included, the risk of acute MI was found to increase eight times, while the risk of ischemic stroke increased six times in. A 3-fold rise in the incidence of acute MI and stroke was still observed even when Day 0 was excluded. The study analysed 86,742 patients in Sweden diagnosed with COVID-19 between February 1 and September 14, 2020. More than 300,000 matched control individuals were also included in the analysis.… (Source: Medscape, August 2, 2021)

Children too get long COVID

Most school-going children with Covid-19 have only mild disease and recover in around 6 days from their illness, with more than 98% recovering in 8 weeks. But, the symptoms like fatigue, headache, or loss of smell persisted in a small percentage of children pointing out the need for continuous care of children even post-Covid. These results from a large study of smartphone data from the UK has been published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health… (Medscape, August 6, 2021)

Antibody response to Covid-19 quickly declines in IBD patients

In a serosurveillance study from Canada published in the journal Gut, the antibody responses to COVID-19 in patients with inflammatory bowel disease were found to quickly decline in due course of time. This decrease was particularly notable more than 90 days after the infection. Up to 90 days after the diagnosis, 80.8% of IBD patients tested positive for nucleocapsid antibodies, but after 90 days, antibodies decreased to 21.7%. Seropositivity in IBD patients was 1% compared to 1.8% in the general population during the same time suggesting that the serological response postinfection was not as robust as the general population

Gilaad G. Kaplan, MD, from the University of Calgary in Canada said, “Many individuals with IBD are immunocompromised by their medical treatments. Moreover, immunosuppression may reduce the formation of antibodies to viruses such as SARS-CoV-2.” The study also emphasizes on the importance of vaccination in these patients.... (Source: Medpage Today, August 4, 2021)

Post-vaccine disease flares are rare in patients with rheumatic diseases

Patients with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases who had taken the Covid-19 vaccine rarely reported post-vaccine disease flares, in a prospective observational study reported in Arthritis & Rheumatology.

Around 11% of 1377 patients who were given two doses of mRNA vaccine while on immunomodulatory therapy reported disease flare that required treatment, but none of the flares were severe. Among the 151 patients who had a flare following vaccination, it was after the second dose in 60%. Worsening of pre-existing symptoms was reported by 91% and new-onset symptoms by 72%.The local and systemic reactions to the vaccine were common and expected.... (Source: Medpage Today, August 4, 2021)

Potential protective effects of Flu vaccine against SARS-CoV-2

A retrospective cohort analysis of 74,754 patients in PLoS One has shown that the influenza vaccine may provide vital protection against adverse outcomes caused by SARS-CoV-2. The analysis showed that the patients who received the influenza vaccine experienced decreased sepsis, fewer ICU admissions, fewer deep vein thrombosis (DVT) 60–120 days after positive test and fewer emergency department (ED) visits 90–120 days post SARS-CoV-2-positive diagnosis. These observations suggest a potential protective effect of influenza vaccination in SARS-CoV-2-positive patients against adverse outcomes... (PLoS One. 2021 Aug 3;16(8):e025554)

(With inputs from Dr Monica Vasudev)

Dr Veena Aggarwal

Consultant Womens’ Health

Trustee, Dr KK’s Heart Care Foundation of India

CMD and Editor-in-Chief, IJCP Group & Medtalks