International Journal of Cardiovascular Sciences. 11/Apr/2023;36:e20230024.
Cardiac Involvement in COVID-19: A Matter Close to the Heart, Beyond the Acute Illness
Gláucia Maria Moraes de Oliveira
, Fausto J. Pinto
Human infection with the SARS-CoV-2 virus and COVID-19 have been ravaging the entire world since December 2019. As of February 17, 2023, records from the World Health Organization point to more than 756 million confirmed cases and approximately 6,845,000 deaths. In Brazil, until this date, approximately 36,961,000 cases have been reported, with about 698,000 deaths. Among the deaths, the main comorbidities reported are heart disease (40%), diabetes (28%), obesity (10%), neurological diseases (5%), kidney diseases (5%), and pneumopathies (5%). Furthermore, 70% of patients who died were 60 years old or older, and males were prevalent in 60% of the cases.
The impact on mortality is well documented in the acute phase of this disease. Moraes et al., in this systematic review of literature, consolidate the findings described as myocarditis, ventricular dysfunction, cardiogenic shock, takotsubo cardiomyopathy, and sudden cardiac death due to association with ventricular arrhythmias. However, other outcomes linked to more significant morbidity are still not completely understood. In other words, what can and what should we expect from recovered cases?
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