People who have been infected with the coronavirus are much more likely to encounter cardiovascular disease compared to those who were never infected, a new study published in the Nature Medicine journal found. Photo: endocrinologyadvisor.com

Millions of American COVID-19 patients have struggled with the long-term effects of COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic, dubbed "long COVID." Symptoms for "long haulers" can include fatigue and anxiety, brain fog, joint or chest pain, unexplained changes in blood pressure, dizziness, diarrhea and nausea.

The Nature Medicine article focuses on cardiovascular diseases, using data from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to study over 150,000 veterans who contracted COVID-19 for up to a year after recovery. Those who contracted COVID-19 were over 60% more likely to develop a cardiac issue. 

Researchers found that those who had a COVID-19 infection were more likely to have inflammatory heart disease, heart attacks, heart failure, clotting and other cardiovascular symptoms compared to those who had never been infected.