{"id":19248,"date":"2023-03-29T09:00:23","date_gmt":"2023-03-29T09:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/?p=19248"},"modified":"2023-03-28T14:26:33","modified_gmt":"2023-03-28T14:26:33","slug":"flu-can-trigger-a-heart-attack-dutch-study-suggests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/flu-can-trigger-a-heart-attack-dutch-study-suggests\/","title":{"rendered":"Flu can trigger a heart attack, Dutch study suggests"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id='av_section_1'  class='avia-section main_color avia-section-default avia-no-border-styling  avia-bg-style-scroll  avia-builder-el-0  avia-builder-el-no-sibling   container_wrap fullsize' style=' '  ><div class='container' ><main  role=\"main\" itemprop=\"mainContentOfPage\"  class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-19248'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n<div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  av-hide-on-mobile  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding first  avia-builder-el-1  el_before_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-first  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center\"><!--Begin ClixTrac.com Banner Code -->\r\n<a href=\"https:\/\/clixtrac.com\/goto\/?311442\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clixtrac.com\/banner\/311442.jpg\" alt=\"Bio-Rad - Preparing for a Stress-free QC Audit\" title=\"Bio-Rad - Preparing for a Stress-free QC Audit\" border=\"0\" \/><\/a>\r\n<!--End ClixTrac.com Banner Code --><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div><div class=\"flex_column av_three_fifth  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-3  el_after_av_one_fifth  el_before_av_one_fifth  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center\"><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n<section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><header class=\"entry-content-header\"><h1 class=\"post-title entry-title\" itemprop=\"headline\">Flu can trigger a heart attack, Dutch study suggests<\/h1><span class=\"post-meta-infos\">\/ <span class=\"blog-categories minor-meta\">in <a href=\"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/e-news\/\" rel=\"tag\">E-News<\/a>  <\/span><\/span><\/header>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n<section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><ul>\n<li>\n<h3><i><span lang=\"EN-US\">Heart attacks six times more likely in week after being diagnosed with flu than in the year before or after<\/span><\/i><\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<li>\n<h3><i><span lang=\"EN-US\">Results underline importance of vaccination, as well as awareness of heart attack symptoms among flu patients and those treating them<\/span><\/i><\/h3>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><em><b>ECCMID 2023, Copenhagen,<\/b> <\/em><b><em>15-18 April<\/em><\/b><\/p>\n<p><b><\/b><span lang=\"EN-US\">Individuals who are diagnosed with flu are six times more likely to have a heart attack in the week after they test positive for the virus than they are in the year before or afterwards, a Dutch study being presented at this year&#8217;s European Congress of Clinical Microbiology &amp; Infectious Diseases (ECCMID 2023,<\/span> Copenhagen, 15-18 April<span lang=\"EN-US\">) has found.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">The link between flu and heart attacks has been made before, in a 2018 Canadian study of individuals hospitalised for heart attacks.<sup>1<\/sup>\u00a0 The Canadian study, however, did not include information from death records which meant out-of-hospital deaths from heart attacks were not included.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">Dr Annemarijn de Boer, of the Julius Center for Life Sciences and Primary Care, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands, used the results of tests from 16 laboratories across The Netherlands (covering around 40% of the population), along with death and hospital records to produce a more complete picture.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">26,221<i> <\/i>cases of influenza were confirmed by the laboratories between 2008 and 2019. 401 individuals had at least one heart attack (myocardial infarction) within one year of their flu diagnosis (419 heart attacks in total).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">Of the 419 heart attacks, 25 were in the first seven days after flu diagnosis, 217 within the year before diagnosis and 177 in the year after flu diagnosis (not including the first seven days.)<b><i><\/i><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">Around a third of the individuals (139\/401) died, of any cause, within a year of being diagnosed with flu.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">The researchers calculated that the individuals studied were 6.16 times more likely to have a heart attack in the seven days following a flu diagnosis than in the year before or after. <\/span><span lang=\"EN-US\">This compares to a figure of 6.05 times in the Canadian study.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">However, excluding data from death records, as in the Canadian study, reduced the increase in heart attack risk in the first week to 2.42 times.\u00a0 The researchers say this illustrates the impact that incomplete data can have on study findings.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">They add that differences in testing practices in the two countries may help explain why they found the association to be weaker than in the Canadian study.\u00a0 (Testing for flu in out-of-hospital settings is less common in the Netherlands than in Canada.)\u00a0 However, the association is still significant and, by using similar methodology to the Canadian team, they\u2019ve been able to confirm that the increase in risk applies across different populations.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">The influenza virus is known to increase the coagulation (the \u201cstickiness\u201d or clotting of blood).\u00a0 It is thought that this, along with the inflammation that is part of the body\u2019s immune response against the virus, can weaken fatty plaques that have built up in the arteries. If a plaque ruptures, a blood clot can form, blocking the blood supply to the heart and causing a heart attack.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">Dr de Boer concludes: \u201cWith the potential public health implications of an association between influenza virus infection and acute heart attacks, showing robustness of results in a different study population is important.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cOur results endorse strategies to prevent influenza infection, including vaccination.\u00a0 They also advocate for a raised awareness among physicians and hospitalised flu-patients for symptoms of heart attacks. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cWhile it isn\u2019t clear from our results if those with less severe flu are also at risk, it is prudent for them to be aware of the link.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><br \/>\n<div  class='avia-image-container  av-styling-    avia-builder-el-7  el_after_av_textblock  el_before_av_social_share  avia-align-center '  itemprop=\"image\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/ImageObject\"  ><div class='avia-image-container-inner'><div class='avia-image-overlay-wrap'><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"avia_image\" src=\"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2023\/03\/Julius-Center.png\" alt=\"\" title=\"Julius Center\" height=\"554\" width=\"1136\" itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<div  class='av-social-sharing-box  avia-builder-el-8  el_after_av_image  avia-builder-el-last  av-social-sharing-box-minimal '><div class='av-share-box'><h5 class='av-share-link-description av-no-toc '>Share this<\/h5><ul class='av-share-box-list noLightbox'><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-facebook' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on Facebook\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/flu-can-trigger-a-heart-attack-dutch-study-suggests\/&#038;t=Flu%20can%20trigger%20a%20heart%20attack%2C%20Dutch%20study%20suggests\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-av_icon=\"\ue8f3\" data-av_iconfont=\"entypo-fontello\" title=\"\" data-avia-related-tooltip=\"Share on Facebook\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on Facebook<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-twitter' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on Twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?text=Flu%20can%20trigger%20a%20heart%20attack%2C%20Dutch%20study%20suggests&#038;url=https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/?p=19248\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-av_icon=\"\ue8f1\" data-av_iconfont=\"entypo-fontello\" title=\"\" data-avia-related-tooltip=\"Share on Twitter\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on Twitter<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-whatsapp' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on WhatsApp\" href=\"https:\/\/api.whatsapp.com\/send?text=https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/flu-can-trigger-a-heart-attack-dutch-study-suggests\/\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-av_icon=\"\uf232\" data-av_iconfont=\"entypo-fontello\" title=\"\" data-avia-related-tooltip=\"Share on WhatsApp\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on WhatsApp<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-linkedin' ><a target=\"_blank\" aria-label=\"Share on LinkedIn\" href=\"https:\/\/linkedin.com\/shareArticle?mini=true&#038;title=Flu%20can%20trigger%20a%20heart%20attack%2C%20Dutch%20study%20suggests&#038;url=https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/flu-can-trigger-a-heart-attack-dutch-study-suggests\/\" aria-hidden=\"false\" data-av_icon=\"\ue8fc\" data-av_iconfont=\"entypo-fontello\" title=\"\" data-avia-related-tooltip=\"Share on LinkedIn\" rel=\"noopener\"><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share on LinkedIn<\/span><\/a><\/li><li class='av-share-link av-social-link-mail' ><a  aria-label=\"Share by Mail\" href='mailto:?subject=Flu%20can%20trigger%20a%20heart%20attack%2C%20Dutch%20study%20suggests&#038;body=https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/flu-can-trigger-a-heart-attack-dutch-study-suggests\/' aria-hidden='false' data-av_icon='\ue805' data-av_iconfont='entypo-fontello' title='' data-avia-related-tooltip='Share by Mail'><span class='avia_hidden_link_text'>Share by Mail<\/span><\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/div><\/div><\/p><\/div><div class=\"flex_column av_one_fifth  av-hide-on-mobile  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding   avia-builder-el-9  el_after_av_three_fifth  avia-builder-el-last  \" style='border-radius:0px; '><section class=\"av_textblock_section \"  itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/BlogPosting\" itemprop=\"blogPost\" ><div class='avia_textblock  '   itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center\"><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Heart attacks six times more likely in week after being diagnosed with flu than in the year before or after Results underline importance of vaccination, as well as awareness of heart attack symptoms among flu patients and those treating them<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":19249,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19248","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-e-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19248"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19248"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19248\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19251,"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19248\/revisions\/19251"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19249"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19248"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19248"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clinlabint.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19248"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}