Health Happenings

Heart Health; Vaccines

Another step towards a return to normalcy will soon be occurring as the FDA approved the Pfizer vaccine for youth ages 12-15 this week. Testing in this age bracket began 6 months ago and the data review was rigorous and thorough. Children this age have tolerated the vaccines very well and the vaccines have a very high rate of efficacy; 100% in preventing Covid19 infections in clinical trials. Now the CDC will review and then need to approve for the rollout of vaccinations to this age group of 17 million to begin.

There is also good news on the effect of Covid19 on the heart in mild cases. Cardiac imaging in even mild cases of covid19 showed alarming myocardial inflammation in 60% of individuals and 78% of those cases showed other cardiac abnormalities soon after the infection. Now studies 6 months after having had mild Covid19 show no long term ongoing cardiac effects which demonstrate that the heart is able to recover fully in most cases.

Since heart disease has affected several in our church family recently, I thought a review of some warning signs that you definitely want to pay attention to might be helpful. In very basic terms, our heart function is comprised of both a mechanical system-heart structure/muscles, walls, valves, blood vessels, etc. and also an electrical system. The electrical component controls our heart rate and rhythm. Either or both of these systems affect our overall heart function. Symptoms that you should not ignore include chest pain or tightness, shortness of breath, extreme fatigue, pain, numbness, weakness, or coldness in your arms or legs, and pain in the jaw, neck, throat, upper abdomen or back.

Other signals to pay attention to are dizziness, fainting or near fainting, lightheadedness, fluttering in your chest, new or increased swelling in your feet or legs. Any of these symptoms could indicate other conditions too so many people ignore them or explain them away. It is always wise though to pay attention to our bodies and the fact that God created them in such a way that we have warning signs. Wishing each of you a healthy and blessed week.

Amy Taylor RN