Cambridge: From the start of the pandemic, it was clear that older adults and people with underlying health problems were much more likely to become ill from a COVID infection than younger, healthier people. High blood pressure, or hypertension, is one of the most common conditions in the general population, especially among those who are middle-aged and older. It also seemed to be one of the most common conditions among COVID patients, especially those who were hospitalized or died.
In a new study, we found that people with high blood pressure have a 22% higher risk of being hospitalized or dying from the virus than people with high blood pressure. Although there seemed to be a link between high blood pressure and COVID from the start of the pandemic, it was not clear whether high blood pressure alone caused a higher risk of hospitalization or death from COVID.
The link could have been confounded by age and other factors that are known to influence both hypertension and COVID risk, including socioeconomic status, gender, ethnicity and body mass index (BMI).
We used data from the UK Biobank, a research database that includes in-depth genetic and health information from half a million UK volunteers. Our study included more than 16,000 of these people who tested positive for COVID. We analyzed data analyzed from March 2020 to early 2021. Using statistical models, we analyzed the effect of having hypertension on the risk of severe COVID, adjusting for potential confounding factors (including age, BMI, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, smoking status). and diabetic conditions).
A limitation of our study is that the UK Biobank volunteer population is generally healthier than the UK population and has relatively few participants from ethnic minority groups. This means we need to be cautious about making generalisations. So, why might having high blood pressure increase the risk of covid infection? An intriguing hypothesis involves the way SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19) enters our cells. It does so through a receptor called angiotensin converting enzyme-2, or ACE2. ACE2 is a key component of what is known as the renin–angiotensin system, which is a key regulator of blood pressure. The angiotensin system may provide the link between the severity of COVID and hypertension. But at this stage, we can only speculate. We will need further research to understand the exact mechanism.
blood pressure control
When a person has high blood pressure, if it is not severe it can be controlled with lifestyle interventions at first. But if that doesn’t work, blood pressure medications will usually be considered. In another part of our analysis, we looked at all participants with high blood pressure who were taking medications to lower their blood pressure. Sometimes, for a variety of possible reasons, even if someone is being treated with medication, their blood pressure remains above a certain target.
We used blood pressure measurements from the participants’ GP records to determine whether their blood pressure was controlled. For people with poorly controlled blood pressure, we found that the risk of severe COVID was almost twice that of those who were diagnosed with hypertension but had blood pressure under control. We also showed that the type of blood pressure medication people were taking did not modify the risk of severe covid. This is worth noting because during the pandemic there has been a lot of uncertainty about which blood pressure drugs should be prescribed.
In particular, there was concern that a type of drug called an ACE inhibitor could alter the expression of ACE2 receptors, which could theoretically make people taking this drug more vulnerable to severe COVID-19. But we did not find any association between the type of blood pressure medication and the risk of severe covid. What is important is whether the blood pressure is being controlled successfully.
a public health problem
High blood pressure is the leading risk factor of death from any cause in the UK and worldwide. It also disproportionately affects low-income groups and people from ethnic minority backgrounds in Western countries. And within these groups, rates of blood pressure control tend to be poor. This may help explain why ethnic minorities and low-income groups in the UK have been disproportionately affected by COVID.
Thanks in large part to effective vaccines and treatments, we are seeing fewer people hospitalized and dying from COVID than ever before in the pandemic. Nonetheless, our research points to high blood pressure as an important risk factor for severe COVID, and shows that effective blood pressure control is critical to reducing this risk.
Unfortunately, rates of blood pressure control in the UK and more broadly have worsened in the wake of the pandemic, as people are being screened and those with high blood pressure are identified in the first place. This is now a major public health problem and needs to be addressed urgently.
(Disclaimer: Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Zee News staff and has been published from a syndicated feed.)