Summary Goals COVID-19 increases the risk of cardiovascular disease, especially thrombotic complications. There is less knowledge about the risk of arrhythmias after COVID-19. In this study, we aimed to quantify the risk of arrhythmias after COVID-19. Methods and results This study was based on data from the national registry of all people in Sweden who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 between February 1, 2020 and May 25, 2021. The outcome was incident cardiac arrhythmias , defined as international classification of diseases (tenth revision) in the records are as follows: atrial arrhythmias; paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardias; bradyarrhythmias; and ventricular arrhythmias . A self-controlled case series study and a matched cohort study were conducted, using conditional Poisson regression, to determine the incidence rate and risk, respectively, of an arrhythmia event after COVID-19. A total of 1,057,174 exposed (COVID-19-19) people as well as 4,074,844 matched unexposed people were included in the study. The incidence rate of atrial tachycardias, paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardias, and bradyarrhythmias increased significantly up to 60, 180, and 14 days after COVID-19, respectively. In the matched cohort study, the hazard ratio during days 1 to 30 after COVID-19/index date was 12.28 (10.79 to 13.96), 5.26 (3.74 to 7, 42) and 3.36 (2.42 to 4.68), respectively, for the three results. The risks were generally higher in older people, in unvaccinated people, and in people with more severe COVID-19. The risk of ventricular arrhythmias was not increased. Conclusion There is an increased risk of cardiac arrhythmias after COVID-19, and particularly in vulnerable older people, as well as in people with severe COVID-19. |
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People infected with COVID-19 are also at increased risk of heart rhythm disturbances, such as atrial fibrillation . This is shown in a new study from Umeå University, Sweden, which is one of the largest studies of its kind in the world.
"The results underline the importance of being vaccinated against COVID-19 and for the health system to identify people at highest risk of suffering from these types of complications, so that the correct diagnosis is made and appropriate treatment is initiated in time. "says Ioannis Katsoularis, first author of the study and a cardiologist at the University Hospital of Northern Sweden in Umeå.
The researchers were able to show that those who had been sick with COVID-19 could also suffer heart rhythm disturbances, both in the form of tachycardias and bradyarrhythmias.
The study shows that the risk of atrial fibrillation and flutter increased up to two months after infection. In the first month, the risk was twelve times higher than that of people who did not have COVID-19 infection.
Even the risk of a specific subset of tachycardias, paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardias, increased up to 6 months after infection and was five times higher in the first month. For bradyarrhythmias, the risk increased up to 14 days after infection and was three times higher in the first month compared to subjects without COVID-19. Previous research in this area has not focused as much on which people are most at risk.
“We found that the risks were higher in older people, people with severe COVID-19 and during the first wave of the pandemic. We could also see that unvaccinated people were at higher risk than vaccinated people. "Overall, the severity of the infection was the most important risk factor," says Anne-Marie Fors Connolly, who heads the Umeå University research group behind the study.
The study collated information from large national registries. All people who tested positive for the virus in Sweden from the start of the pandemic until May 2021 were included, but also a comparison group of people without a positive virus test. This nationwide study, which is one of the largest of its kind in the world, included more than one million people with COVID-19 and more than four million control people. Researchers at Umeå University have previously shown that COVID-19 increases the risk of blood clots, heart attack and stroke.
