Covid-19 as a Risk Factor for Cardiovascular Disease

Abstract

It is generally recognized that non-communicable diseases, including arterial hypertension (AH), are a major public health problem in all countries, since about 70% of the causes of death in the world are associated with non-communicable diseases. However, the sudden emergence of an infectious disease - a new coronavirus infection - has changed the established understanding of diseases that pose the greatest threat to health. The coronavirus pandemic has affected all areas of people's lives, including health, economics, education and psychological aspects. It is predicted that the coronavirus pandemic will cause a new pandemic of non-communicable diseases, mostly cardiovascular (CVD). This prognosis seems very likely, given the decrease in physical activity, tense emotional environment, increased consumption of alcohol and smoking, increased stress levels during the pandemic, which are risk factors for CVD, including increased blood pressure (BP). In the context of the coronavirus pandemic, first of all, attention should be paid to patients with hypertension, given the high prevalence of this disease, as well as the fact that the components of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) are interested in the penetration of a new virus into the body. The consensus considered current data on the management of patients with hypertension in a pandemic, available as of August 2020.