A spiking heart rate could be a symptom of long COVID, experts say – CTV
March 1, 2022
Many who are on the mend from COVID-19 may have noticed a confusing symptom plaguing them for weeks: a sudden, unexplained spiking of their heart rate.
For some people, it’s a brief, uncomfortable reminder of the acute phase of illness while they work back towards their usual level of fitness.
But heart palpitations and confusing spikes in heart rate are also one of the most common symptoms plaguing those with long COVID, a little-understood condition that can linger for months or even years after a person first contracted the virus.
While this cardiac symptom doesn’t appear to stem from long-term damage to the heart, experts say, spiking heart rates can provide anxiety and discomfort for thousands of Canadians, disrupting their lives and activities.
“Think of your body as an automatic car,” Dr. Angela Cheung told CTVNews.ca. “And there’s disturbance there, meaning it’s not responding appropriately or it’s taking longer to respond appropriately. So that’s really what’s happening.”
