Quote: ‘Dad had the Covid injection, because of Crohns, he caught endocarditis – parasite in a heart valve – spending 3 months in hospital. He wishes he never had it’
A NEW study found that even mild cases of Covid can lead to changes in your arteries – causing an increased chance of heart attacks and strokes.
Ray Adderley, who suffers from Long Covid, said hasn’t been the same, getting tired and suffering sense of smell and taste.
Manchester born Ray has a resting heart rate, going from 59, before Covid, to 71 after Covid.
“It doesn’t fluctuate much from 71, in spite of me doing two, 10km a week on the treadmill, and 4 miles walking the dogs everyday, up hill and down dale,” said Ray.
Speaking in Part 2 of a Leader Exclusive, Ray added: “I’m pretty lucky though, my pal Tony had a year off work, his hair turned from brown to grey in that time, and he’s in and out of hospital with chest problems.”
In a study, published in the Journal of Clinical Medicine, said in the months after a Covid infection, the patient’s arteries increasingly stiffen and can be more ‘dysfunctional’.
“This is a problem, because stiffer artery walls force the heart to work harder to get blood round the body, which can lead to an increase in blood pressure and a higher chance of heart attacks and strokes,” said Co-author of the international study, Dr Maria Perissiou from the University of Portsmouth.
“We were surprised to observe such a decline in vascular health, which deteriorated even further with time since COVID-19 infection.
“Usually, you’d expect inflammation to decrease with time after infection, and for all the physiological functions to go back to normal or a healthy level.
“We can only speculate on what causes this phenomenon without further investigation, but emerging evidence suggests that it stems from COVID-19 triggering the auto-immune process that leads to vasculature deterioration,” she said.
It isn’t known if the effects are permanent, or just long-lasting, as the study covered the months after an infection.
Professor Ana Jeroncic from the University of Split, who also led the study, said: “Given the number of people infected with COVID-19 worldwide, the fact that infection can have harmful effects on cardiovascular health in young people who had a mild form of the disease warrants close monitoring.
“The question remains as to whether this harmful effect is irreversible or permanent, and if not, for how long it lasts,” he said.
Covid has already been shown to be associated with a type of acute heart failure and vascular dysfunction, but this study examined the long-term consequences on vascular health.
In this international study, the group of researchers brought together 32 volunteers who had all had their arterial stiffness measured – before they had Covid.
They tested their arteries, following the infection, to allow comparison, and made the shocking discovery.
This comes as a new Covid subvariant, XBB.1.16, known as Arcturus, has been spreading across the world, amid concerns it could be more transmissible than past variants.
Covid/Crohns
Ray said his father was also affected: “My dad had the Covid injection, because of his crohns, and off the back of the injection he caught endocarditis (parasite in a heart valve) and spent three months in hospital.
“The rub is this – the cases of endocarditis rocketed after the injection. Something he now wishes he never had. He’s 73, but he’s lost nearly all his strength and is constantly tired.”
Arcturus is believed to have been behind the spike in cases in India, that led to mask laws being reintroduced in places.
In the UK, health chiefs have said that British patients have died with the virus subvariant.
Ray said: “It is absolutely ridiculous how this nonsense can still be affecting us, after all this time.
“It is really frustrating, the continuing studies of it will get next to nothing in funding, so there will be no conclusive Data.
“We will all just be playing ‘Russian Roulette’ with what we’ve already had!”.
