Some people are infected with the SARS-Cov-2 virus, without having any symptoms at all. Others may show mild symptoms for a few days, and then seem to be back to normal. In either case, you may not be back to normal at all.
You have probably heard of “long Covid.” This is the persistence of symptoms of Covid-19 long after the virus is no longer detectable in a person’s body. There is a whole laundry list of symptoms, such as loss of smell, loss of taste, headache, shortness of breath, chest pains, brain fog, fatigue, and even anxiety and depression. Long haulers may have any subset of these symptoms, plus others. Bad as these symptoms are, they are not the worst. Covid-19 can also cause serious heart damage.
After a SARS-Cov-19 infection has run its course, and you feel normal again, you may still have suffered damage to your heart. The port of entry into your body that is used by the SARS-Cov-2 virus is a portion of the virus called its ‘spike protein.’ Unfortunately for humans, the spike protein fits into a receptor that is common in heart tissue. Once the connection is made, viral DNA is injected through the spike into the heart tissue, where it goes about its business of reproducing itself. This infection causes inflammation called myocarditis. Victims may show no outward signs of illness, but a heart examination may show a dangerous arrhythmia, which in extreme cases can lead to sudden cardiac death. In a test run recently by researchers, of 100 Covid-19 survivors, some of who m were asymptomatic, 78 had some kind of heart irregularity two months after infection. 60 of those showed signs of ongoing myocardial inflammation.
Myocardial inflammation is particularly dangerous to athletes, who often put their hearts under extreme stress as they try to perform at the highest level that they can. Persistent myocarditis is thought to affect between one and five percent of elite athletes who contract Covid-19. That may not seem like much, but I’d hate to be one of those few out of 100 who dies of heart failure. One might also wonder how many of the 100 will give up their dream of an Olympic team berth or a professional sports contract for fear of cardiac death.
It’s not just older people with pre-existing conditions that should take every possible precaution against a Covid-19 infection. Robust, young athletes in the peak of health need to be just as careful.
BIO:
Allen G. Taylor is a 40-year veteran of the computer industry and the author of over 40 books, including Develop Microsoft HoloLens Apps Now, Get Fit with Apple Watch, Cruise for Free, SQL For Dummies, 9th Edition, Crystal Reports 2008 For Dummies, Database Development For Dummies, Access Power Programming with VBA, and SQL All-In-One For Dummies, Third Edition. He lectures internationally on astronomy, databases, innovation, and entrepreneurship. He also teaches database development and Crystal Reports through a leading online education provider. For the latest news on Allen’s activities, check out his blog at wwwallengtaylor.com or contact him at allen.taylor@ieee.org.