Odds of any acute cardiovascular event increased when compared with COVID-19 hospitalizations in boosted and unboosted individuals
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
WEDNESDAY, May 28, 2025 (HealthDay News) — Patients with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) hospitalization have increased odds of any acute cardiovascular event compared with COVID-19 hospitalizations, according to a study published online May 22 in JAMA Network Open.
Liang En Wee, M.P.H., from the National Centre for Infectious Diseases in Singapore, and colleagues compared the risk for acute cardiovascular complications in adults hospitalized for RSV versus COVID-19 or influenza in a cross-sectional study conducted before RSV vaccination rollout in Singapore. The study included 32,960 respiratory viral infections (RVIs; 2,148 for RSV; 14,389 for influenza; 16,423 for COVID-19).
Overall, 10.9 percent of the 2,148 patients hospitalized for RSV had an acute cardiovascular event. The researchers found that the odds of any acute cardiovascular event were higher in RSV hospitalizations versus boosted COVID-19 hospitalizations (at least three vaccine doses; adjusted odds ratio, 1.31); the same was seen for other individual cardiac events (adjusted odds ratios, 1.52 and 1.75 for dysrhythmia and heart failure, respectively). Patients hospitalized for RSV had higher odds of any acute cardiovascular event (adjusted odds ratio, 1.58) as well as dysrhythmias or heart failure compared with unboosted COVID-19 hospitalizations (no more than three vaccine doses). There was no significant difference seen in the odds of a cardiovascular event in RSV versus influenza, apart from contemporaneous hospitalizations after the pandemic (2023 to 2024), with significantly higher odds of heart failure in RSV hospitalizations versus vaccine-breakthrough influenza hospitalizations (adjusted odds ratio, 2.09).
“Evaluating vaccination’s role in attenuating risk of cardiovascular events associated with vaccine-preventable RVIs remains important given the availability of RSV vaccines for older adults,” the authors write. “Individuals with a preexisting cardiac history remain at higher risk of acute cardiac events during RSV hospitalization and should be prioritized for vaccination.”
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