More than half of patients hospitalised with coronavirus suffer heart damage, a major study has found.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), found that around one in seven patients with covid-19 had severe heart dysfunction
Yet the majority had never been diagnosed with heart disease before.
Experts warn the findings suggest that Covid-19 itself may seriously affect the vital organ.
Among this group, heart scans were abnormal in 46 per cent of patients and 13 per cent had severe disease.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, associate medical director at the British Heart Foundation and a consultant cardiologist, said: "Severe Covid-19 illness can result in damage to the heart and circulatory system."We urgently need to understand more about why this is happening so we can provide appropriate care - both short and long term.
This global study reveal that special considerations to be given for patients with heart complications in people with Covid-19 so that we can adapt their treatment if needed."
The study, published in the European Heart Journal - Cardiovascular Imaging, found the abnormalities were almost evenly split between the left and right chambers of the heart.
Somewhat 3% of them had recent heart attacks.Professor Marc Dweck, who led the research, said: "Covid-19 is a complex, multi-system disease which can have profound effects on many parts of the body, including the heart.
Damage to the heart is common in Flu, But this is quite surprising that a high number of patients with covid-19 is getting heart complications.An immense trial and a deeper understanding is required to rule out the exact problem effecting the vital organ.