According to a recent preprint study published on MedRxiv.org, COVID-19 infection is linked to poor cardiovascular (CV) risk factor prognosis and an elevated risk for CV consequences.

442 persons (mean age, 45.4 years; 71% female) participated in the analysis, with 46% reporting pre-existing conditions, 23% having CV risk factors, and 46% having cardiovascular disease (CVD). 43.0% of participants had persistent cardiac-related symptoms, while 26.9% reported newly diagnosed cardiac conditions.

The most commonly reported cardiac-related symptoms were tachycardia (20.6% vs 12.9%; P .05) and heart palpitations (22.6% vs 14.5%) after 2 weeks after an acute COVID-19 infection. Tachycardia made up 24% of newly diagnosed cardiac disorders, hypertension made up 20%, and postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome made up 13%.

The study concluded that there was a prevalence of new CV risk factors and cardiac conditions following COVID-19 infection and that additional research was required to better understand how to increase patient access to care and raise awareness of post-acute sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection (PASC) symptoms in patients with a history of COVID-19. (Medscape, August 02, 2022)