World News | Even mild Covid infection can damage heart health, study finds

NEW DELHI, April 28 (PTI) Even mild cases of COVID-19 can have long-term harmful effects on cardiovascular health, a study has warned.

The study, published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine, is the first to compare arterial stiffness levels before and after COVID infection; a marker associated with arterial aging and function.

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The researchers found that in individuals diagnosed with mild COVID-19, arterial and central cardiovascular function was affected by the disease two to three months after infection.

Side effects include stiffer and dysfunctional arteries that can lead to the development of cardiovascular disease, they said.

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“We were surprised to observe such a decline in vascular health, which worsened over time since COVID-19 infection,” said study co-author Maria Perissiou from the University of Portsmouth, UK.

“Usually, you would expect post-infection inflammation to decrease over time and all physiological functions to return to normal or healthy levels,” Perissiou said.

Emerging evidence suggests that this phenomenon stems from COVID-19 triggering an autoimmune process that leads to deterioration of the vascular system, the researchers said.

While COVID-19 has been associated with a form of acute heart failure and vascular dysfunction, the long-term effects of the disease on vascular health need to be explored, they said.

Up to 32 study participants were monitored between October 2019 and April 2022 at the Faculty of Medicine, University of Split, Croatia.

Most are young, under 40, and in good health. Only 9 percent of that group had high blood pressure, and none had high cholesterol. Two had diabetes and 78 percent were non-smokers. This group is almost evenly split between men (56%) and women (44%).

“Given the large number of people infected with COVID-19 worldwide, the fact that the infection can have detrimental effects on the cardiovascular health of young people with mild disease warrants close monitoring,” said Prof. Ana Jeroncic, of the University of Split. led the study, said.

“The question remains whether this deleterious effect is irreversible or permanent, and if not, how long it will last,” Jeroncic said.

The study, while small, does support vascular physiologists’ predictions that future COVID-19 infections will lead to increased cardiovascular disease, the researchers said.

However, they say, what other variables would need to be considered that would lead to this increase.public transport

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)