Cardiac Status and Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Risk of Convalescents after COVID-19 in Poland.

INTRODUCTION The COVID -19 pandemic brought about cardiac complications and unfavorable lifestyle changes that may increase cardiovascular risk. OBJECTIVES Our aim was to establish the cardiac status of convalescents several months after COVID -19, and the 10 -year risk of fatal and nonfatal atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) events, according to the Systemic Coronary Risk Estimation -2 (SCORE2) and SCORE2 -Older Persons (OP) algorithms. PATIENTS AND METHODS The study included 553 convalescents aged 63.5 (SD, 10.26) years, 316 (57.1%) women, hospitalized at the Cardiac Rehabilitation Department, Ustron Health Resort, Poland. The history of cardiac complications, exercise capacity, blood pressure control, echocardiography, 24 -hour electrocardiogram Holter recording, and laboratory workup were assessed. RESULTS A total of 20.7% of men and 17.7% of women (P = 0.38) had cardiac complications during acute COVID -19, most often heart failure (10.7%), pulmonary embolism (3.7%), and supraventricular arrhythmias (6.3%). On average, 4 months after COVID -19 diagnosis, echocardiographic abnormalities were found in 16.7% of men and 9.7% of women (P = 0.1), and benign arrhythmias in 45.3% of men and 44% of women (P = 0.84). Preexisting ASCVD was reported in 21.8% of men and 6.1% of women (P <0.001). The median risk assessed by SCORE2/SCORE2 -OP algorithms in apparently healthy people was high for the participants aged 40-49 years (3%; interquartile range [IQR], 2-4) and 50-69 years The SCORE2 risk in men aged over 70 years was higher than in women (P <0.001). CONCLUSIONS Data collected in the convalescents indicate a relatively small number of cardiac problems in men.