Understanding myocardial infarction trends during the early COVID-19 pandemic: an infodemiology study
Omar Dzaye1,2,3, Matthias Duebgen3, Philipp Berning1
1Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Cardiovascular Disease, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Insights
During the COVID-19 pandemic, online searches for chest pain increased while interest in myocardial infarction decreased. This shift may explain rising cardiovascular deaths despite fewer acute coronary syndrome hospitalizations.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Public Health
- Digital Epidemiology
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic significantly altered public health behaviors and healthcare seeking.
- Early pandemic trends indicated potential shifts in attention towards specific health concerns.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze search engine query trends for chest pain and myocardial infarction during the early COVID-19 pandemic.
- To investigate the relationship between public attention to chest pain and acute coronary syndrome (ACS) hospitalizations and cardiovascular mortality.
Main Methods:
- Utilized Google Trends data from the United States for early 2020.
- Correlated search query frequencies with hospitalization rates for ACS and cardiovascular mortality data.
Main Results:
- Observed a significant increase in Google searches for "chest pain" during early 2020.
- Noted a concurrent decrease in search interest for "myocardial infarction".
- These trends suggest a potential diversion of public attention away from critical cardiac symptoms like chest pain, a key indicator of ACS.
Conclusions:
- The reduced public focus on chest pain and myocardial infarction during the pandemic may have contributed to increased cardiovascular mortality.
- Understanding public attention shifts during health crises is crucial for targeted public health interventions and managing cardiovascular events.
Abstract:
During the first months of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic in early 2020, Google Trends data in the United States showed a strong increase in search query frequency for chest pain symptoms despite a concurrent decrease in search interest for myocardial infarction. This suggests a reduced attention to acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and chest pain as its main symptom during this time period. These observations could help explain why cardiovascular mortality rose dramatically despite a strong decrease in hospitalisation rates for ACS.
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