People with long COVID are 14% more likely to develop hypertension than those who have not experienced prolonged symptoms following COVID-19. The risk of high blood pressure also increases in patients who had the infection without requiring hospitalization. This is the conclusion of researchers who analyzed medical data from more than 1.2 million adults in Sweden. The findings were published in the Journal of the American Heart Association (JAHA).
The study included people aged 18 to 65 who were followed from October 2020 to January 2025. The researchers excluded individuals who had been diagnosed with hypertension before the start of the observation period, as well as patients who had been hospitalized with COVID-19.
Long COVID was identified in 8,365 participants, or approximately 0.7% of the entire cohort. During the follow-up period, hypertension developed in 22–23% of people with long COVID. After accounting for age, socioeconomic status, and other medical conditions, the researchers found that these individuals were 14% more likely to develop high blood pressure than the other participants.
The association was observed in both men and women, but hypertension was more common among men with long COVID: it was diagnosed in 24% of them, compared with 16% of women. The association was also stronger among older people and patients with diabetes.
The researchers suggest that COVID-19 may leave lasting changes in blood vessel function that affect blood pressure. However, the study cannot establish that long COVID itself causes hypertension.
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