In a new study from the CDC, researchers found people hospitalized with COVID-19 were up to twice as likely to die or be critically sick if they also had congenital heart defects.
People born with heart defects also had a higher risk of needing a ventilator or being treated in the intensive care unit than people without heart defects.
The team also found that having another underlying health condition – such as heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, Down syndrome, diabetes or obesity – in addition to a heart defect placed people at the highest risk for the most severe illness from COVID-19.
Men and people 50 or older also were among those at the highest risk.
Congenital heart defects occur when the heart, or the blood vessels near it, fail to develop properly before birth.
There are more than a dozen different types, but having some kind of heart abnormality is the most common type of birth defect worldwide.
In the study, the team analyzed medical records for 235,638 people with and without congenital heart defects who were hospitalized for COVID-19 across the U.S. from March 2020 until January 2021. Patients were between 1 and 64 years old.
They found compared to patients without them, those who had heart defects had higher rates of ICU admittance, 54% compared to 43%; higher ventilator use, 24% compared to 15%; and higher rates of death, 11% compared to 7%.
The increased risks held true regardless of age or having other health conditions.
But not all COVID-19 patients with heart defects experienced poor outcomes which point to the need for more research to identify why.
And the results suggest health professionals should pay particular attention to preventive care for people born with heart defects.
The team says people with heart defects should be encouraged to receive the COVID-19 vaccines and boosters and to continue to practice additional preventive measures for COVID-19, such as mask-wearing and physical distancing.
People with heart defects should also consult with their health care teams about additional steps to manage personal risks related to COVID-19, given the significantly increased risk of severe infection and serious complications.
If you care about heart health, please read studies about common heartburn drug that may help treat COVID-19, and drinking coffee this way can help prevent stroke, heart disease.
For more information about COVID, please see recent studies about how COVID affects the heart, and results showing scientists find a new drug that could prevent COVID-19.
The study is published in Circulation and was conducted by Karrie Downing et al.
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