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Australians dying of fatal heart attacks skyrocketed by 17 per cent last year, as experts offer reasons for the frightening rise.
- Deaths from fatal heart attacks rose 17 percent
- Doctors have blamed Covid and the impacts of lockdowns
- GPs have urged Australians to book a heart check
More Australians than ever are dying from fatal heart attacks due to the lingering effects of the Covid pandemic and the virus’s impact on the heart.
Up to 10,200 Australians died of ischemic heart disease in the first eight months of 2022, marking a 17% increase over what would be expected in a “normal” year.
Doctors say the effects of the pandemic increased pre-existing risk factors and that some people were at increased risk of illness after recovering from the virus.
While heart disease has been a leading cause of death for several years, experts say the lockdowns meant many patients developed progressive symptoms much later.
Experts haven’t had to look far to find links between the coronavirus and cardiovascular problems, and one study found that hospitalizations had skyrocketed after the pandemic.
More than 22,000 Australians died of ischemic heart disease in the first eight months of 2022, an increase of 17% over the previous year (file image)
The study, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, found that hospitalizations of people with myocarditis and pericarditis, pulmonary embolism, heart attacks and strokes were significantly more frequent after Covid.
“The estimated risk of myocarditis or pericarditis after SARS-CoV-2 infection is 18 to 21 times that of uninfected people,” the study indicated.
Myocarditis is related to inflammation of the heart muscle, while pericarditis is inflammation of the thin, sac-like tissue that surrounds the heart.
“Similarly, the risk of acute myocardial infarction is 3 to 6 times, that of ischemic stroke is 3 to 10 times, and the risk of venous thromboembolism (blood clots in the veins) is up to eight times higher,” continuous.
The study also found that vaccination can reduce the risk of non-respiratory complications of Covid, including ischemic stroke.
Cardiologists say the impact of the virus on the hospital system also saw a number of patients presenting in the late stages of the disease, with diagnosis and treatment also delayed during the pandemic.
Professor Steve Nicholls, a cardiologist, told the Sydney Morning Herald that doctors worried that heart disease patients would be overlooked as the virus took hold.
While heart disease has been a leading cause of death for several years, experts say the lockdowns meant many patients developed progressive symptoms much later.
“So it’s not just that a lot of people are dying, but we’re seeing a lot of people in a wide range of different stages of [heart] disease,’ he said.
“One of our concerns early on in Covid was that we were going to miss people early. [in heart disease] and then people would tend to file later.’
Australia has seen a rise in serious heart problems, with higher heart attack and stroke rates in people who have recovered from the virus, compared to those who have never been infected.
Some of the biggest contributors to heart disease are high cholesterol, smoking, obesity and high blood pressure, as well as family history.
As death rates continue to rise, doctors have urged Australians to get their hearts checked after the number of appointments dropped during the Covid lockdowns.