Nirmatrelvir-ritonavir, sold by Pfizer under the name Paxlovid, is commonly prescribed to treat COVID-19. When treating some heart patients, however, physicians may want to consider an alternative approach.

The new meta-analysis, published in Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine, included data from 58 million patients. “We hope our findings will help mitigate vaccine hesitancy and increase vaccine uptake," one researcher said. 

A well-known cardiologist who once fully supported COVID-19 vaccines is now saying he thinks they have done more harm than good. Online, as one might expect, people on both sides of this particular debate have been quick to respond. 

Vaccine-related myocarditis was seen in approximately 0.00005% of children between the ages of 12 and 15. All cases were mild, and the median length of stay at the hospital was three days. 

The heart pumps appear to provide significant benefits for patients with acute myocardial infarction- or myocarditis-related cardiogenic shock. 

The new analysis, published in Circulation, confirmed that vaccine-related myocarditis is incredibly rare.

Researchers examined data from nearly 31,000 adult patients hospitalized with COVID-19, sharing their findings in Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology.