New study suggests cardiac complications risk higher after COVID-19 infection than after mRNA vaccination

A new study suggested the risk for cardiac complications was significantly higher after SARS-CoV-2 infection than after mRNA COVID-19 vaccination.

The study, published by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday, analyzed electronic health record data from 40 U.S. health care systems from Jan. 1, 2021 to Jan. 31, 2022.

Researchers found the risk for cardiac outcomes was significantly higher after SARS-CoV-2 infection than after first, second, or unspecified dose of mRNA COVID-19 vaccination for all other groups by sex and age, said the study.

These findings support continued use of mRNA COVID-19 vaccines among all eligible persons aged over five, it said.

Cardiac complications, particularly myocarditis and pericarditis, have been associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection and mRNA COVID-19 vaccination. Multisystem inflammatory syndrome is a rare but serious complication of SARS-CoV-2 infection with frequent cardiac involvement, according to the study.