Having Covid increases risk of heart problems – blood clots, irregular heartbeat, heart attack, stroke – doctors studying long Covid warn

Cardiovascular problems such as blood clots and high blood pressure are part of long Covid – ongoing health issues for patients who recover from having Covid-19

They are part of the wider toll of the virus on heart health, which included a rise in heart attacks in people 40 and under in the first two years of the pandemic

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Patients who recover from Covid-19 are suffering cardiovascular problems, including stroke, blood clots and abnormal heartbeat up to a year later. Above: one such patient, Mike Camilleri, works with physical therapist Beth Hughes in St. Louis, Missouri. Photo: AP

Published: 4:15am, 16 Aug 2023Updated: 4:30am, 16 Aug 2023

American firefighter and paramedic Mike Camilleri used to have no trouble hauling heavy gear up ladders. Now, as he battles the effects of long Covid, he gingerly steps onto a treadmill to learn how his heart handles a simple walk.

“This is, like, not a tough-guy test, so don’t fake it,” warns Beth Hughes, a physical therapist at Washington University in St Louis, in the US state of Missouri.

A mild case of Covid-19 set off a chain reaction that eventually left Camilleri with dangerous blood pressure spikes, a heartbeat that raced with slight exertion, and episodes of intense chest pain.

He’s far from alone. How profound a toll Covid-19 has taken on heart health is only starting to emerge.

The effects of Covid-19 on heart health in some people are only now starting to emerge. Photo: Shutterstock

“We are seeing effects on the heart and the vascular system that really outnumber, unfortunately, effects on other organ systems,” says Dr Susan Cheng, a cardiologist at Cedars-Sinai Medical Centre in Los Angeles, California.

It’s not only an issue for long Covid patients like Camilleri. For up to a year after a case of Covid-19, people may be at increased risk of developing a new heart-related problem, anything from blood clots and irregular heartbeats to a heart attack – even if they initially seem to recover just fine.