Influenza for heart disease

Flu is very dangerous for heart disease. It is important for people with heart disease to know that the flu season worldwide peaks in January and continues throughout the winter. The risk of deteriorating health increases with the same consistency for people with cardiovascular disease.

Read also: Heart disease and colds: who will win?

What should heart patients know about influenza?

People who are at risk for heart disease should get a flu shot every fall. Why? Research shows that flu epidemics are associated with increased deaths from heart disease and that the flu can actually cause heart attacks that lead to death.

If you have heart disease, getting the flu shot can do more than just prevent the flu. In fact, the shot can prevent a heart attack.

What you should know about the effects of flu on the body? Flu is a viral disease that causes symptoms such as fever, chills, cough, sore throat, headache, body and muscle pain, and general discomfort. Doctors have long known about the connection between flu and heart disease, which is also the cause of inflammation of the arteries. Patients with heart disease are especially vulnerable to contracting the flu, and the stress of an infection in your cardiovascular system can further aggravate heart problems.

Results of research on the effect of influenza on heart function

In the latest 39 studies, UK scientists have tested the link between flu and heart attack. The studies have consistently found that flu acts as a trigger for heart attacks in people with heart disease. It turns out that up to half of sudden deaths due to flu were caused by heart disease.

In two studies, scientists also tested whether the flu vaccine could actually prevent a heart attack. They suggest that the flu shot might prevent a heart attack if you already have heart disease (it's not clear whether it would help people who don't already have heart disease).

Atherosclerosis and flu

Researchers believe that influenza causes acute and severe inflammation in the body, which in some patients can lead to the destabilization of atherosclerotic plaques in the coronary arteries and cause heart attacks.

Most people in different countries live with various stages of atherosclerosis and do not even know it, because the symptoms do not manifest themselves. However, in some patients, the condition of the atherosclerotic plaques undergoes sudden changes, mainly due to severe inflammation. This leads to the rupture of vulnerable plaques and subsequent formation of blood clots, resulting in a heart attack.

No scientific studies have specifically examined the link between the H1N1 flu strain (“ swine flu ”) currently circulating and heart disease. Although this form of flu is no more dangerous than regular flu for heart patients, it can still cause a heart attack. However, since the flu outbreak is expected to be quite widespread this year, it is especially important for heart patients to take all necessary steps to protect themselves.

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How to protect your heart from flu?

More recent scientific studies have shown that using antiviral drugs against influenza (for example, the new generation drug oseltamivir) after influenza infection can further reduce the risk of stroke and heart attacks in susceptible patients. For this, it is necessary to contact a doctor within the first 48 hours after the onset of flu symptoms so that antiviral therapy is effective.

WHO recommends that all people with heart disease receive annual flu vaccinations. The supplemental vaccine is designed specifically to prevent the H1N1 swine flu virus. People who are at very high risk of developing complications from the flu should not avoid vaccination – it may save their lives. The groups at highest risk of complications from the flu include people with these conditions:

• Coronary heart disease or chest pain (angina)
• Heart failure
• Heart attack, stroke, or those undergoing procedures to treat heart disease
• Peripheral arterial disease
• Diabetes
• Pregnancy, especially in the second and third trimester

Those most vulnerable to infection, especially older patients, are at the highest risk of suffering a heart attack after the flu. Meanwhile, in the US, only 1 in 3 heart patients gets regular flu shots, and in Ukraine, it is only 1 in 100,000 people.

Preventive measures against influenza

The vaccine begins to work strongly two weeks after vaccination, and there are many different strains of the disease. Therefore, each year the vaccine only protects against the most common types of flu. Therefore, in addition to vaccinations, people with heart disease should continue to follow general safety measures, including:

• Wash your hands (or use hand sanitizer) before eating and before touching your eyes, mouth, or nose
• Avoid close contact with sick people (even children)
• Get plenty of sleep, drink plenty of fluids and eat healthy foods – this will strengthen your immune system and prepare it to fight the flu.
• Be physically active and learn to manage stress

• If you need a serious reason to quit smoking, know that smokers are 5 times more likely to get upper respiratory infections (including flu) and cardiovascular disease.

Flu is a very powerful and dangerous enemy for heart disease, so it is better to avoid it than to fight it.