Heart Health
COVID-19's cardiac legacy: An update
The virus may leave people more vulnerable to a host of heart-related issues. But vaccination can lower these risks.
- Reviewed by Christopher P. Cannon, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Heart Letter; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing
More than three years into the COVD-19 pandemic, most Americans have been infected with the coronavirus at least once. It's now clear that these infections can have lingering effects on the cardiovascular system, including among people with no previous evidence of heart disease. Even a mild infection with SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) may increase your risk of a heart attack, stroke, or heart failure up to a year after you recover from the infection, as reported in the July 2022 Heart Letter.
Now, a new study reveals a higher risk of additional heart complications in people with post-COVID conditions (PCC), commonly known as long COVID (see "Long COVID: Lingering effects throughout the body"). Published March 3, 2023, in JAMA Health Forum, the study relied on health insurance claims data from more than 40,000 people throughout the United States during the first year of the pandemic.
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About the Author
Julie Corliss, Executive Editor, Harvard Heart Letter
About the Reviewer
Christopher P. Cannon, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Heart Letter; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing
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