COVID-19 infection and vaccination linked to debilitating heart condition—risk from vaccines ‘relatively slim’
COVID-19 patients may face an increased risk of developing a significant heart rhythm condition, postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTs), according to new findings published in Nature Cardiovascular Research.[1] COVID-19 vaccines are also associated with a higher POTS risk, but the risk was much greater after COVID-19 than after COVID-19 vaccination.
“The main message here is that while we see a potential link between COVID-19 vaccination and POTS, preventing COVID-19 through vaccination is still the best way to reduce your risk of developing POTS,” corresponding author Alan C. Kwan, MD, a cardiologist with the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, said in a prepared statement.
Kwan’s comment echoes what several studies—including one from Patone et al. and another from Voleti et al.— have revealed about another serious cardiac condition, myocarditis: COVID-19 is associated with a higher risk than COVID-19 vaccination.
A closer look at COVID-related and vaccine-related postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome
Kwan et al. examined data from more than 284,000 patients vaccinated against COVID-19 and more than 12,000 COVID-19 patients. All patients were treated by the same health system from 2020 to 2022.
Among the vaccinated patients, the mean age was 52 years old, 57% were female and 63% were white. The patients received a variety of different vaccines, with 59% receiving the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. The most common new diagnoses within 90 days of vaccination were myocarditis, dysautonomia, POTS, mast cell activation syndrome and urinary tract infection.
Among the separate group of COVID-19 patients, the mean age was 47 years old, 50% were female and 54% were white. The risk of a patient developing COVID-related POTS within 90 days was lower than their risk of developing COVID-related myocarditis—but it was higher than their risk of developing other common primary care (CPC) diagnoses included in the team’s study.
Overall, the authors found, developing POTS was five times more likely after a COVID-19 diagnosis than it was after being vaccinated against COVID-19. Kwan described the association between vaccination and POTS as “relatively slim.”
The study’s authors believe their findings should help encourage undecided individuals to seek out a COVID-19 vaccine.
“We recognize as clinicians that side effects from vaccines can vary in type and severity, even if still uncommon overall,” Kwan said. “We hope that clearer data and improved understanding will eventually enhance medical trust and quality of care as well as communications around vaccines.”
Michael has more than 18 years of experience as a professional writer and editor. He has written at length about cardiology, radiology, artificial intelligence and other key healthcare topics.