Pandemic increased heart disease deaths; Experts explain the detrimental effects of Covid-19 on your heart

Covid-19 may up your risk of heart diseases and even lead to deaths. Dr C. K. Ponde explains the detrimental effects of Covid-19 on your heart.

Since the outbreak of COVID-19 late last year, a growing number of studies have suggested that coronavirus infected patients may suffer from heart damage. The effects of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID, has health care experts worried about a potential increase in heart failure.

A new study published in the journal Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, researchers at University College London's Institute of Health Informatics estimated that avoiding hospital in pandemic also contribute to increased heart disease deaths. The researchers estimated that the excess cardiac mortality due to non-attendance at Emergency Departments, during the initial phase of the pandemic, may have been as high as 232 deaths per week.

Understanding The Link Between Heart Diseases And Covid-19

Dr C. K. Ponde, Consultant Cardiologist, P.D Hinduja Hospital & MRC said "approximately 20 per cent of the coronavirus have the infection of the heart in one way or another. The deadly microscopic disease can damage the heart both directly and indirectly, and lead to conditions such as acute myocarditis, myocardial infarction, sinus bradycardias, and heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEH)."

Acute Myocarditis

Myocarditis is the inflammation of the heart muscles. "Acute myocarditis is an immune-mediated affection of the heart muscle, leading to a reduces pumping function of the heart, lung congestion and a resultant multi-organ failure," explained Dr Ponde.

It primarily affects the elderly, those sick with an infection, or someone with co-morbidities. These patients are the most vulnerable to ending up in an emergency.

Myocardial Infarction

"Covid-19 tends to produce hypercoagulation of blood in which the blood becomes prone to clotting, which can result in heart attacks i.e. myocardial infarction. This majorly affects patients with acute heart attack, those with a history of fever or coronavirus infection," continued the expert.

Sinus Bradycardia

Another way in which the deadly virus affects your heart is sinus bradycardia. "It affects the electric system of the heart, albeit, in a much rarer proportion of patients with a severe infection.

"This condition majorly affects younger people with mild symptoms of coronavirus. It may last for days to weeks, but these patients tend to recover very well."

Sinus bradycardia is a slow, regular heartbeat that happens when your heart's pacemaker, the sinus node, generates heartbeats less than 60 times in a minute.

Heart Failure With Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEH)

"Patients in the recovery phase of Covid-19, from 2 weeks to 20 weeks, can be affected with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. It affects the elderly, females with hypertension (high blood pressure), or previous cardiovascular problem. People who have fully recovered from coronavirus might come back complaining about acute breathlessness," elucidated Dr Ponde.

"Since there is no definite treatment for the disease yet, effective treatment of most of these cardiac conditions remain more or less the same."

He further asserted that there is still so much that is left unexplored when it comes to this epidemic. Experts are still learning in this pandemic about the many knowns and unknowns, and how the virus affects different organs of the body.