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Reaction: Human papillomavirus infection increases cardiovascular risk in women

A study in South Korea followed more than 160,000 women for more than eight years and concluded that infection with different strains of human papillomavirus is associated with a fourfold increase in the relative risk of dying from cardiovascular causes. According to the authors, "it could be that the virus causes inflammation in the blood vessels, contributing to blockage and damage to the arteries". The findings are published in the European Heart Journal.

07/02/2024 - 01:05 CET
 
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Julián - HPV (EN)

Julián Pérez-Villacastín

Head of the Cardiology Department at the Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid and former president of the Spanish Society of Cardiology

Science Media Centre Spain

This is a very interesting study. It has long been known that any inflammation you have in your body is very detrimental to the health of your arteries. For example, we know that infectious problems in the mouth such as periodontitis are associated with more cardiovascular problems (angina, heart attack or even stroke). It is also well studied in relation to viruses such as influenza and covid virus, which increase the number of heart attacks and strokes through various mechanisms.  


The human papilloma virus seems to affect even women who do not have many classical cardiovascular risk factors, such as smoking, cholesterol or high blood pressure. Why the virus causes this damage to the arteries is not yet known exactly, but several mechanisms have been postulated. It could be that the virus produces a state of chronic inflammation and this favours the existence of factors in the blood that damage the arteries or even that the virus itself can invade certain arterial areas and favour the development of atherosclerosis with the lesions it produces.  
In any case, it is important to remember that many viruses have their own vaccines. This means that, by getting vaccinated, people can reduce risks such as the one discussed in this article. We already know that getting vaccinated against the flu reduces the chances of having a heart attack or stroke, but this should be remembered often because people forget it.

The author has not responded to our request to declare conflicts of interest
EN
Publications
Human papillomavirus infection and cardiovascular mortality: a cohort study
  • Research article
  • Peer reviewed
  • Non-randomized
  • Observational study
  • People
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European Heart Journal
Publication date
Authors

Cheong et al.

Study types:
  • Research article
  • Peer reviewed
  • Non-randomized
  • Observational study
  • People
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