Life (Aug 2020)

Cardiovascular System in COVID-19: Simply a Viewer or a Leading Actor?

  • Filiberto Fausto Mottola,
  • Nicoletta Verde,
  • Riccardo Ricciolino,
  • Marco Di Di Mauro,
  • Marco Giuseppe Migliaccio,
  • Vincenzo Carfora,
  • Giorgio Spiniello,
  • Nicola Coppola,
  • Vanvitelli COVID-19 Group

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/life10090165
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 10, no. 9
p. 165

Abstract

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As of January 2020, a new pandemic has spread from Wuhan and caused thousands of deaths worldwide. Several studies have observed a relationship between coronavirus disease (COVID-19) infection and the cardiovascular system with the appearance of myocardial damage, myocarditis, pericarditis, heart failure and various arrhythmic manifestations, as well as an increase in thromboembolic risk. Cardiovascular manifestations have been highlighted especially in older and more fragile patients and in those with multiple cardiovascular risk factors such as cancer, diabetes, obesity and hypertension. In this review, we will examine the cardiac involvement associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, focusing on the pathophysiological mechanism underlying manifestations and their clinical implication, taking into account the main scientific papers published to date.

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