Have you had chickenpox? This is how the common condition could ‘trigger a deadly heart attack or stroke’
IF you endured a bout of chickenpox as a child, you could be at greater risk of a suffering a deadly stroke or heart attack, experts today warned.
Shingles, which is a reactivation of the chickenpox virus, has been found to increase the risk of the killer conditions by up to 40 per cent, new findings suggest.
It means around one in four people could be at greater risk, according to the NHS.
The chickenpox virus, varicella-zoster virus, remains dormant in the body after infection.
And in around a quarter of the population, it reignites in adulthood to cause shingles.
The main sign is pain, followed by a rash that develops into itchy blisters, that resemble it's cousin, chickenpox.
Now, a team of scientists in South Korea, have warned shingles is a risk factor for heart attack and stroke.
They examined the health records of 519,880 patients between 2003 and 2013.
Among them, 23,233 people were found to have suffered a bout of shingles.
The researchers then compared that group with a same-size group who were shingles-free.
Shingles was more likely to affect women.
And they were also more likely to show other common risk factors for heart attack and stroke, such as being older, with high blood pressure, diabetes and a high cholesterol.
But, they were also less likely to smoke, have lower alcohol intake, exercise more and be of a higher socioeconomic class.
The findings showed shingles raised the risk of a stroke by 35 per cent and heart attack by 59 per cent.
Those aged under 40 were at greatest risk of suffering a stroke, a blood clot on the brain.
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Meanwhile, the risk of heart attack and stroke was greatest in the year after a person suffered shingles, and decreased over time.
Dr Sung-Han Kim of the Asan Medical Center in Seoul, said: "While these findings require further study into the mechanism that causes shingles patients to have increased risk of heart attack and stroke, it is important that physicians treating these patients make them aware of their increased risk."
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While the South Korean team didn't suggest why shingles may be linked to heart attack or stroke, past studies have suggested inflammation is the key.
It's thought shingles could cause inflammation that can affect the arteries, both in the brain and heart, that could increase the risk of a clot forming.
The findings are published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
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