Attention: Influenza can increase your heart attack risk sixfold

Like every year, a new wave of influenza is spreading across the country. This is accompanied by admonishing voices to be vaccinated in time, in addition to observing hygienic imperatives.  A study published in The New England Journal of Medicine by Canadian scientists from the Institute for Clinical Evaluation Sciences (ICES) in Toronto shows how important this can be. According to the study, there is a direct link between flu-like infections and the risk of heart attack.  

Risk of heart attack six times higher

Over a period of seven years, test persons over 35 years of age were examined. In their results, the scientists found that the risk of a heart attack was six times higher in the seven days after the flu (influenza A and B infection) than in the rest of the year. Study author Jeffrey C. Kwong cites inflammation caused by infections as the reason for the significantly increased risk of heart attack, which can lead to blood clots in the blood vessels of the heart.  The study results were not only examined on the basis of the clinical symptoms of the patients, but were also confirmed in the laboratory by highly specific pathogen detection.

Older people at particular risk

The study also found that older people over the age of 65 are particularly at risk of suffering a heart attack after a flu infection.

Flu vaccination also protects against cardiovascular events

The authors of the study therefore recommend that people at risk get vaccinated against influenza in good time.  People who are ill should also stay at home to prevent infection. Washing your hands regularly also reduces the likelihood of transmission. It is just as important as preventive flu protection to properly cure the illness after an infection and to refrain from sport or heavy physical work for as long as possible. If you want to keep an eye on your heart health at all times, you can turn your smartphone into your mobile, personalised ECG in just 3 steps. You can find out exactly how this works here.

Original study: Acute Myocardial Infarction after Laboratory-Comfirmed Influenza Infection