The virus can age women's blood vessels by five years
A large international study has revealed that COVID-19 can silently age women's blood vessels by approximately five years, raising their long-term risk of heart attack and stroke even when the original infection was mild. Tracking nearly 2,400 adults across 16 countries, researchers found arterial stiffening in women persisted well beyond recovery — a disparity that did not appear in men. The finding, published in the European Heart Journal, reframes COVID-19 not merely as a respiratory illness but as a systemic vascular disease whose consequences may unfold quietly across decades. It is a reminder that the body keeps its own accounting of what we survive.
- Women who contracted COVID — even mildly — showed measurable hardening of their arteries at six and twelve months post-infection, equivalent to five additional years of cardiovascular aging.
- The effect raises heart disease risk by roughly three percent for a typical 60-year-old woman, a figure that compounds silently with every passing year of undetected vascular damage.
- Men showed no statistically significant vascular aging from COVID, making this a distinctly gendered health crisis that risks being overlooked in broader post-pandemic conversations.
- Women experiencing long COVID symptoms — fatigue, breathlessness, cognitive fog — were more likely to show signs of vascular damage, suggesting persistent symptoms may be a warning signal hiding in plain sight.
- Vaccination offered measurable protection against arterial stiffening, and cardiologists are now urging post-COVID women to prioritize regular cardiovascular monitoring, blood pressure management, and lifestyle interventions before damage compounds further.
A major international study tracking nearly 2,400 adults across 16 countries has found that COVID-19 can age women's blood vessels by approximately five years — a consequence that persists even after mild infections and carries serious implications for heart disease and stroke risk in the years ahead.
Researchers measured artery stiffness at six and twelve months after infection. Women who had contracted COVID showed significant arterial hardening regardless of how sick they had initially been, though those admitted to intensive care experienced the most pronounced damage. Men, by contrast, showed no statistically significant vascular aging — a distinction that has led scientists to flag this as a pressing women's health concern.
The stakes are concrete: arterial stiffness forces the heart to work harder and increases the risk of rupture or blockage. Experts estimate the five-year aging effect could raise the likelihood of heart problems by roughly three percent for a typical 60-year-old woman. Professor Rosa Maria Bruno of Université Paris Cité, one of the study's leaders, described the findings as a warning signal, noting that vascular injuries from COVID may have consequences stretching years into the future.
The research also found a connection to long COVID — women with persistent fatigue, breathlessness, or cognitive fog were more likely to show signs of vascular damage, suggesting these symptoms may point to something deeper. There was, however, a meaningful silver lining: vaccinated individuals showed less arterial stiffening than the unvaccinated, indicating that vaccination offers protection well beyond preventing severe acute illness.
Scientists believe the virus's interaction with ACE2 receptors in blood vessel linings triggers inflammation that persists long after recovery. Cardiologists are now urging women with a COVID history — especially those with ongoing symptoms — to prioritize cardiovascular monitoring, blood pressure and cholesterol management, and lifestyle changes before the damage compounds silently into something harder to reverse.
A large international study has uncovered a troubling long-term consequence of COVID-19 that appears to affect women disproportionately: the virus can age their blood vessels by approximately five years, a finding that carries serious implications for heart disease and stroke risk decades down the line.
Researchers tracking nearly 2,400 adults across 16 countries measured changes in artery stiffness at six and twelve months after infection. What emerged from the data was unmistakable. Women who had contracted COVID showed significant hardening of their arteries even when their initial illness had been mild. The severity of the original infection correlated directly with the degree of damage—those admitted to intensive care experienced the most pronounced arterial stiffening, but the effect persisted even among women who recovered at home.
Why this matters is straightforward: arterial stiffness is a well-established marker of cardiovascular disease. When blood vessels lose their elasticity, the heart must work harder to pump blood through them, and the risk of rupture or blockage increases. Experts estimate that the five-year "aging" effect could raise the likelihood of heart problems by roughly three percent for a typical 60-year-old woman. Men, by contrast, showed no statistically significant vascular aging from COVID infection—a distinction that underscores why this finding is being flagged as a women's health concern.
Professor Rosa Maria Bruno of Université Paris Cité, one of the study's leaders, described the results as a warning signal. She emphasized that while scientists have long known COVID can directly damage blood vessel tissue, the research demonstrates that these injuries may have consequences stretching years into the future, particularly for women. Early identification of those at highest risk, she suggested, could be crucial for preventing future heart attacks and strokes.
The study also illuminated a connection to long COVID. Women who continued experiencing fatigue, breathlessness, or cognitive fog were more likely to show signs of vascular aging, suggesting that persistent symptoms may serve as a marker for underlying vascular damage. There was, however, a silver lining in the data. People who had been vaccinated against COVID showed less arterial stiffening than those who had never received a vaccine, indicating that vaccination offers protection beyond simply preventing severe acute illness.
Scientists believe the mechanism involves the virus's interaction with ACE2 receptors on the inner lining of blood vessels, the endothelium. The resulting inflammation and immune response appear to trigger changes that persist long after the acute infection has resolved. Cardiologists are now emphasizing that women with a history of COVID—especially those with ongoing symptoms—should prioritize cardiovascular monitoring. Regular check-ups, attention to blood pressure and cholesterol levels, exercise, and other lifestyle measures could help mitigate the elevated risk.
This research, published in the European Heart Journal, ranks among the largest international investigations into COVID's lasting vascular effects. It adds substantial weight to a growing body of evidence suggesting that COVID-19 is not merely a respiratory illness but a systemic vascular disease with consequences that may unfold silently over years.
Notable Quotes
There may be long-term consequences, especially for women, and we need to identify who is at risk at an early stage to prevent heart attacks and strokes.— Professor Rosa Maria Bruno, Université Paris Cité
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why would the virus affect women's blood vessels more severely than men's?
The study doesn't definitively answer that, but there are biological differences in how men and women respond to viral infections and inflammation. Women's immune systems tend to mount stronger inflammatory responses, which could explain why the vascular damage is more pronounced. It's a pattern researchers are still working to understand.
If a woman had a mild case of COVID, should she be worried?
Not panicked, but aware. Even mild infections showed arterial stiffening. The risk increase—about three percent for a 60-year-old—isn't enormous, but it's real and cumulative. It's the kind of thing that argues for paying attention to heart health going forward: knowing your blood pressure, managing cholesterol, staying active.
What about the vaccination finding? Does that change how we should think about getting boosters?
It suggests vaccination does more than prevent severe acute illness. It appears to protect the blood vessels themselves from the kind of damage the virus causes. That's another reason to stay current with vaccination, especially for women concerned about long-term cardiovascular health.
How would a doctor actually identify who's at risk early on?
That's the challenge the researchers are flagging. Right now there's no simple screening test. But women with persistent long COVID symptoms—fatigue, breathlessness, brain fog—appear to be at higher risk. Those women especially should get vascular assessments, blood pressure checks, and possibly imaging to catch any arterial changes early.
Is this reversible? Can the aging of blood vessels be undone?
The study doesn't address that directly. But the implication is that prevention and early intervention matter most. Once arterial stiffness develops, it's harder to reverse. That's why the emphasis is on identifying risk early and managing modifiable factors like blood pressure and cholesterol aggressively.