Research begins to rapidly understand deadly link between Covid-19 and cardiovascular diseases

Improved care for people with heart and circulatory disease suffering from Covid-19 could soon be available after we and the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) announced support for six flagship research programmes. 

Researchers from across the UK will combine data from hospitals, information about our health and lifestyle, genetic studies, and cutting-edge imaging and artificial intelligence techniques to better understand how the virus affects the heart and circulatory system.  

People with heart and circulatory diseases are disproportionally affected by Covid-19. Data from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) has consistently shown heart disease to be among the most common pre-existing health conditions in people who have died with the virus in England and Wales. 

Covid-19 has also been shown to damage the heart and blood vessels, and increase the risk of blood clotting and inflammation, which can lead to heart attacks and strokes.  

Addressing urgent questions

The research projects will address urgent questions, such as who is most at risk, how best to manage Covid-19 infection in people with pre-existing cardiovascular illnesses, and how to prevent the longer term effects that the virus might have on people’s heart and circulation.

Our Medical Director, Professor Sir Nilesh Samani said: “This virus may be a respiratory infection, but the most common underlying health conditions in those who die are cardiovascular. People with heart disease are at higher risk of dying from the virus and the risk for people with diabetes is two to three times higher than the general population.  We are also rapidly learning that the virus can have devastating effects on the heart and circulatory system and increase the risk of heart attacks and strokes. 

“By awarding flagship status to these projects, we hope to mobilise resources and research effort behind studies that have the best chance of swiftly improving care and saving lives. The speed at which we’ve done this is testament to the strength of UK cardiovascular science, and could lead to results within weeks.”

Pinpointing those most at risk

In one project, carried out through the new BHF Data Science Centre, multiple datasets from hospitals, GP surgeries and cardiovascular registries will be linked to give a unique insight into people with heart circulatory diseases who have suffered with Covid-19.  

Professor Cathie Sudlow, Director of the BHF Data Science Centre, said: “The answers to many questions about Covid-19 will lie in the data we’re gathering from patients. By combining datasets and making them safely available to world-leading researchers, we hope to quickly understand who is most at risk and what existing treatments might increase or reduce the damage caused by the disease.” 

In another project, a team led from University College London (UCL), is linking data from large cohort studies to uncover which genetic, demographic or lifestyle factors are associated with increased risk of Covid-19 infection and its severity. This could pave the way for improved treatments or better ways of identifying those at risk.  

Studies will also look at the damage the virus causes to the heart and circulatory system. Researchers led from UCL will set-up a registry to track the heart health complications caused by Covid-19, while another consortium of universities and hospitals led by investigators from Leeds and Oxford hope to follow people recovering for six months and use MR scans to assess longer-term damage to their heart and vital organs. 

Making rapid progress

Professor Keith Channon, Chair of the NIHR-BHF Cardiovascular Partnership, said: “Through the NIHR-BHF partnership, we’ve rapidly mobilised our existing scientific data, infrastructure and research community to answer important questions that could lead to improved ways of treating and caring for people with Covid-19. A positive from this devastating pandemic is that scientists are collaborating at a speed and scale we’ve never seen before. We’re only just starting to understand this disease and need to make rapid progress that will improve care for people in hospital, and in their recovery.”  

Looking at long-term effects of the virus

Scientists at the University of Oxford will use artificial intelligence techniques to assess CT scans to see if the virus causes long-term vascular inflammation. This could lead to wider use of anti-inflammatory treatments and other medicines to lower people’s future risk of heart attacks or strokes. 

Finally, researchers will investigate how the pandemic has affected care for people with heart and circulatory diseases. This follows a sharp fall in non-Covid-19 admissions to hospital, including for heart attack and stroke.  

The initiative builds on a pre-existing partnership between the BHF and NIHR. The research funders have awarded flagship status to peer-reviewed projects to avoid duplication of effort and maximise opportunities for collaboration and rapid results.  

take a look at all six of the projects