The first study of COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness in a large population of adult heart-failure patients suggests that vaccinated participants are 82% more likely to live longer than their unvaccinated peers, according to an analysis presented over the weekend at the Heart Failure 2024 scientific congress of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) in Lisbon, Portugal.
More than 64 million global heart-failure patients
Researchers from the National Health Insurance Service Ilsan Hospital in Goyang, South Korea, analyzed information on vaccinations and clinical outcomes among 147,118 heart-failure patients from the Korean National Health Insurance Service database, which covers nearly all Koreans.
To control for potential confounding factors, vaccinated patients (who received at least two COVID-19 vaccine doses) were matched in a 1:1 ratio to their unvaccinated counterparts (those who received one or no dose), for a total of 73,559 participants each. Participants were followed for a median of 6 months. The average patient age was 69.5 years, and half were women.
Worldwide, more than 64 million people have been diagnosed as having heart failure, a life-threatening syndrome. Previous studies have shown that COVID-19 vaccination is safe in patients with cardiovascular diseases such as heart failure and that COVID-19 outcomes tend to be more severe in patients with the condition.
47% lower risk of hospitalization for heart failure
Relative to one or no vaccination, COVID-19 vaccination was tied to an 82% lower risk of death from any cause, a 47% lower risk of hospitalization for heart failure, and a 13% reduced risk of infection over 6 months. Vaccination was also linked to significantly lower risks of stroke, heart attack, myocarditis/pericarditis, and venous thromboembolism.
"This was the first analysis of COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness in a large population of heart failure patients, and the first to show a clear benefit from vaccination," study coauthor Kyeong-Hyeon Chun, MD, said in the ESC news release.
"The study provides strong evidence to support vaccination in patients with heart failure," he added. "However, this evidence may not be applicable to all patients with heart failure, and the risks of vaccination should be considered in patients with unstable conditions."
