In recent years there has been a significant increase in the number of high blood pressure cases and now experts have discovered one of the main reasons for this and that is Covid-19.
In a study published in the journal Hypertension, it was reported that the risk of high blood pressure increases greatly in people infected with Covid-19.
High blood pressure is called the silent killer because people who suffer from it often go undiagnosed.
People with high blood pressure have narrowed blood vessels, which affects blood flow.
If your arteries are narrow, your blood pressure will rise.
Medical conditions like high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke can develop gradually over time.
A new study from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine found that one in every 10 percent Covid patients are diagnosed with high blood pressure 6 months after exposure to the pandemic.
It should be noted that the problem of blood pressure is very common and millions of people are suffering from it all over the world including Pakistan.
A healthy person’s blood pressure should be 120/80, if a person’s blood pressure is 130/80, then it should be understood that he/she has the onset of hypertension.
The new study examined the medical data of 45,000 patients infected with Covid-19 and about 14,000 patients with the flu between 2020 and 2022.
These individuals did not have a history of high blood pressure before becoming ill with Covid or flu.
During the study, the high blood pressure of these people was evaluated 6 months after being infected with the flu or Covid.
The results showed that 21 percent of the patients who were treated in the hospital due to covid had developed high blood pressure after 6 months, while this rate was 11 percent among those who were mildly ill from covid.
According to the study, the risk of being diagnosed with high blood pressure increases by 2.23 times among those hospitalized due to Covid compared to flu patients.
Similarly, the risk is 50% higher in people with mild covid infection than in flu patients.
The high rate of hypertension cases among Covid patients is alarming as millions of people worldwide have been affected by the pandemic, the researchers said.
The study found that certain factors play a role in patients with Covid-19, such as being over 40 years of age and having a history of chronic respiratory or kidney disease that increases the risk of being diagnosed with high blood pressure.
But researchers have not yet been able to determine exactly how the coronavirus increases the risk of high blood pressure.
They believe the virus may affect blood pressure by affecting heart cells.
This is why they are now planning a long-term study to determine the cause of the link between Covid-19 and high blood pressure.
