ABSTRACT
Increasing evidence has shown an unusual relationship between hypertension and COVID-19, which may not be as simple as previously thought. The purpose of our study was to determine the association of hypertension with the onset and development of COVID-19. A meta-analysis was performed to summarize the prevalence of hypertension in COVID-19 patients, as well as the usage of ACEIs/ARBs. Metaregression analyses were used to evaluate the association of hypertension with disease severity and mortality. PubMed and Google Scholar were searched for relevant studies. A total of 42 studies including 14138 patients were enrolled in the study. The proportion of hypertension in COVID-19 patients in China was 17.7% according to the enrolled studies, while it was 6.0% in a study containing 72314 confirmed cases, which are both much lower than in the general population. All of the data from the 11 provinces in China showed the same tendency. The proportions of hypertension were higher in severe/ICU patients and nonsurvivors than in nonsevere/ICU patients and survivors. The metaregression analyses suggested that both disease severity and risk of death were associated with the incidence of hypertension. A total of 27.6% of COVID-19 patients with hypertension received ACEI/ARB therapy. The proportion of deaths in COVID-19 patients with hypertension treated with ACEIs/ARBs was significantly lower than that in nonuse patients treated with ACEIs/ARBs. In conclusion, hypertension may reduce the infection risk of COVID-19 but increase the risk of developing worse clinical outcomes. The use of ACEIs/ARBs may benefit COVID-19 patients with hypertension.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Studies have reminded that cardiovascular metabolic comorbidities made patients more susceptible to suffer 2019 novel corona virus (2019-nCoV) disease (COVID-19), and exacerbated the infection. The aim of this analysis is to determine the association of cardiovascular metabolic diseases with the development of COVID-19. METHODS: A meta-analysis of eligible studies that summarized the prevalence of cardiovascular metabolic diseases in COVID-19 and compared the incidences of the comorbidities in ICU/severe and non-ICU/severe patients was performed. Embase and PubMed were searched for relevant studies. RESULTS: A total of six studies with 1527 patients were included in this analysis. The proportions of hypertension, cardia-cerebrovascular disease and diabetes in patients with COVID-19 were 17.1%, 16.4% and 9.7%, respectively. The incidences of hypertension, cardia-cerebrovascular diseases and diabetes were about twofolds, threefolds and twofolds, respectively, higher in ICU/severe cases than in their non-ICU/severe counterparts. At least 8.0% patients with COVID-19 suffered the acute cardiac injury. The incidence of acute cardiac injury was about 13 folds higher in ICU/severe patients compared with the non-ICU/severe patients. CONCLUSION: Patients with previous cardiovascular metabolic diseases may face a greater risk of developing into the severe condition and the comorbidities can also greatly affect the prognosis of the COVID-19. On the other hand, COVID-19 can, in turn, aggravate the damage to the heart.