Risk of cardiac events up after RSV infection

Adults who contract respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection appear to be at increased risk of cardiovascular events, according to a study.

Researchers used data from Danish national health registries and identified adults aged ≥45 years with a laboratory-confirmed RSV infection. These individuals were matched to those without RSV infection based on age, sex, and pre-existing comorbid conditions. Similar matched cohorts were established for influenza infection, hip fracture, and urinary tract infection without sepsis as control groups.

The primary outcomes were major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) (ischaemic heart disease, stroke, and heart failure) and any cardiovascular event (MACE, arrhythmias, venous thromboembolism, and inflammatory heart disease). For these outcomes, the matched individuals were followed for up to 365 days after the index date.

A total of 17,494 matched individuals (mean age 71.8 years, 57.6 percent female) were included in the analysis. Over 1 year of follow-up, 665 any-cardiovascular events occurred among 8,747 individuals with RSV infection and 257 among 8,747 individuals without infection, for a risk difference of 4.69 percentage points (95 percent confidence interval [CI], 4.02–5.36). The 1-year risk differences for any cardiovascular event were more pronounced among hospitalized patients (6.61 percentage points, 95 percent CI, 5.70–7.52 percentage points), older individuals (85–94 years: 7.93 percentage points, 95 percent CI, 5.34–10.53), those with pre-existing cardiovascular disease (11.95 percentage points, 95 percent CI, 8.80–15.10), and those with diabetes (7.50 percentage points, 95 percent CI, 4.53–10.47).

The 1-year cardiovascular event risk following RSV was similar to that observed following influenza infection.

These findings point to RSV as a potential risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and underscore the need for vaccination to mitigate this burden.