HQ Team
May 13, 2024: New research says Covid-19 vaccines given to people suffering from heart failure improve their chances of living longer by 82%. This study was presented at the Heart Failure 2024, a scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC).
“Patients with heart failure should be vaccinated against COVID-19 to protect their health,” said study author Dr. Kyeong-Hyeon Chun of the National Health Insurance Service Ilsan Hospital, Goyang, Republic of Korea. “In this large study of patients with heart failure, COVID-19 vaccination was associated with a lower likelihood of contracting the infection, being admitted to hospital because of heart failure, or dying from any cause during a six-month period compared with remaining unvaccinated.”
The researchers used the Korean National Health Insurance Service database, which virtually covers the whole country, to get data on vaccinations and its outcomes. Over 651,120 patients with average age 69.5 years and with heart failure were considered. Fifty percent were women.
In the study, 538,434 (83%) were vaccinated and 112,693 (17%) unvaccinated. Participants who received two or more doses of Covid-19 vaccine were defined as “vaccinated”, and those who missed the jab totally or just took one were defined as “unvaccinated”.
The vaccinated and unvaccinated were matched 1:1 on the basis of age, sex, and their health conditions, and social and economic status. This resulted in 73,559 vaccinated patients and 73,559 unvaccinated patients for the comparative analyses. The participants were followed up at six months.
Lower risk
Vaccination was associated with an 82% lower risk of all-cause mortality, 47% lower risk of hospitalisation for heart failure, and 13% reduced risk of COVID-19 infection compared with no vaccination. Moreover, vaccination was associated with significantly lower risks of stroke, heart attack, and myocarditis/pericarditis.
Dr. Chun said: “This was the first analysis of COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness in a large population of heart failure patients, and the first to show a clear benefit from vaccination. The study provides strong evidence to support vaccination in patients with heart failure. However, this evidence may not be applicable to all patients with heart failure, and the risks of vaccination should be considered in patients with unstable conditions.”
Heart Failure is a life-threatening syndrome affecting more than 64 million people worldwide. There are previous studies that concur with these findings. Covid-19 vaccines were found to be safe and effective in patients with cardiovascular issues.
