Changes in dynamic electrocardiogram after COVID-19 infection: a self-controlled study

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) not only causes respiratory system damage, but also cardiovascular system. Previous studies had shown that COVID-19 can cause abnormal changes in ECG, however few studies reported changes in dynamic electrocardiogram before and after COVID-19 infection. Methods: A retrospective review of patients who were first diagnosed with COVID-19 and underwent dynamic electrocardiogram from Fujian Provincial Hospital between January 1, 2023 and April 30, 2023.In which who had received at least once dynamic electrocardiogram between January 1, 2018 and December 20, 2022 were included in our study. The differences of dynamic electrocardiogram before and after COVID-19 infection were compared and analyzed. Results: A total of 144 COVID-19 patients were included(67 males，mean age 56±14.3). After COVID-19, the mean heart rate and minimum heart rate increased, the total number of atrial premature, atrial tachycardia and ventricular premature contractions bigeminy，the incidence of T wave changes were increased, SDNN, SDNN index, PNN50, HF and LF were decreased(all p < 0.05). Conclusion: Dynamic electrocardiogram showed increased arrhythmia and decreased heart rate variability after-COVID-19 , indicating that COVID-19 has damage to the cardiovascular system, which can provide reference for clinical diagnosis, treatment and prevention.