Heart Disease and Arboviruses: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Area of Science:

• * Medical Entomology
• * Infectious Diseases
• * Cardiology

Background:

• * Arboviruses, including dengue, chikungunya, and Zika, are prevalent globally, transmitted by arthropods.
• * These infections can lead to acute illness and serious cardiovascular complications, often overlooked in developing nations.

Purpose of the Study:

• * To systematically review and quantify the burden of cardiac involvement associated with dengue, chikungunya, and Zika virus infections.
• * To assess the pooled incidence of cardiovascular complications in patients with these arboviruses.

Main Methods:

• * Systematic literature search of multiple databases for studies published up to March 2022.
• * Selection and independent review of relevant articles investigating arbovirus and cardiovascular disease associations.
• * Proportion meta-analysis to determine the frequency-weighted mean of cardiovascular findings.

Main Results:

• * A total of 42 articles (n = 76,678) were analyzed.
• * Pooled incidence of cardiac events in dengue fever was 27.21% (I² = 94%), with higher myocarditis rates in those under 20 (33.85%).
• * Pooled incidence of cardiac involvement in chikungunya was 32.81% (I² = 96%). Zika virus infection showed structural and heart rate variability changes.

Conclusions:

• * Cardiac involvement is a significant and frequent complication of arbovirus infections, particularly dengue fever.
• * The findings highlight the need for increased awareness and monitoring of cardiovascular health in arbovirus-affected populations.
• * Further research is warranted to understand the long-term cardiovascular sequelae of these infections.