Posted: Sep 22, 2009 9:00 AM by Associated Press Heart patients
who catch the flu may have more to worry about than just a fever
or the sniffles: the virus could also spark a heart attack, new
research shows. Amid the global outbreak of swine flu, experts
say it's crucial that heart patients get vaccinated against both
regular flu and swine flu to avoid medical problems. Doctors
said swine flu isn't any more dangerous than regular flu, but
it's important for heart patients to get vaccinated because more
flu viruses will be circulating this year. British researchers
analyzed 39 previous studies of heart patients and found a
consistent link between flu and heart attacks. Up to half of all
unexpected flu deaths were due to heart disease, the researchers
found. The study was published online Tuesday in the British
medical journal, The Lancet Infectious Diseases. "The message
here is so strong and so logical that it's hard for us to
ignore," said Dr. Ralph Brindis, vice president of the American
College of Cardiol