Medics have long known that the virus can damage the heart and blood vessels when people become ill with the disease. There have been numerous occasions when Covid patients have suffered from clots, heart inflammation, arrhythmia and heart failure during the course of their illness. Researchers in the US now believe that SARS-CoV-2 may have a long term detrimental impact on cardiovascular health in general. 

Scientists analysed more than 11 million US veterans' health records in the first large study to evaluate cardiovascular outcomes one year after Covid infection.

They found the risk of 20 different heart and vessel maladies, including heart attacks and strokes, was significantly increased in veterans who were infected with the deadly virus one year earlier, compared with those who didn't.

There was also a proportional increase in the risk depending on the severity of the initial disease.

The results were published in Nature Medicine on February 7 and have caused considerable concern among doctors and scientists alike.

Eric Topol, a cardiologist at Scripps Research, told the website Science the results were "stunning ... worse than I expected, for sure.

"All of these are very serious disorders.

"If anybody ever thought that COVID was like the flu this should be one of the most powerful data sets to point out it's not."

Dr Denise D. Dewald, an internal medicine/pediatric specialist in Cleveland, Ohio suggested Covid could have a similar impact on long term cardiovascular health as syphilis.

The sexually transmitted disease can cause lasting impairment to coronary circulation and result in angina pectoris and on rare occasions can also lead to heart attacks.

Covid news

In a tweet accompanied with photos of X-rays and diagrams, she wrote: "Infectious diseases that damage the vascular epithelium do bad things over time.

"Here is an aorta that has dilated (arrow) and developed a huge aneurysm (circled) because of syphilis.

"Covid damages the vascular endothelium.

"Time will tell the consequences."

The prospect of millions of COVID-19 survivors going on to develop long-term health issues will place enormous strain on national health systems for years to come, the study's authors warned.

"Governments and health systems around the world should be prepared to deal with the likely significant contribution of the COVID-19 pandemic to a rise in the burden of cardiovascular diseases," they said. 

The report comes as Boris Johnson announced last week plans to scrap the need for people testing positive for Covid to self-isolate.

The Prime Minister said the new measure would come into effect on February 24.

However, his announcement was met with dismay by leading European scientists.

Roberto Burioni told the Guardian: "These are political choices, not scientific ones."

The professor of microbiology and virology at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University in Milan added: "We've never quarantined people who have the flu, but the flu doesn't kill two or three hundred people a day."