Heart protection from COVID shots remains amid updates, study finds
Heart protection from COVID shots remains amid updates, study finds
研究发现：新冠疫苗在更新后仍能提供心脏保护
Although most Americans have eschewed seasonal COVID-19 vaccines, the updated shots continue to show significant protection against cardiovascular disease, especially for those over age 75 and those with underlying medical conditions. That’s according to a new study that pulled data from more than 1 million patients in a US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health system. 尽管大多数美国人已经不再接种季节性新冠疫苗，但一项基于美国退伍军人事务部（VA）医疗系统超过100万名患者数据的新研究显示，更新后的疫苗在预防心血管疾病方面仍具有显著保护作用，尤其是对于75岁以上的老年人和患有基础疾病的人群。
The finding builds on previous data showing that the vaccines significantly lower the risk of COVID-19-associated cardiovascular risks, particularly heart attacks and strokes. But it wasn’t a given that the benefit would hold up over time—as the virus evolved, the vaccines were updated, population-level immunity increased from previous infection and vaccination, and risk of severe outcomes fell. 这一发现建立在过往数据的基础上，此前数据已表明疫苗能显著降低与新冠病毒相关的心血管风险，特别是心脏病发作和中风。然而，这种益处能否随时间推移而持续并不确定——因为病毒在不断演变，疫苗也在更新，且人群因既往感染和接种而获得的免疫力有所提高，重症风险也随之下降。
The new study, published in JAMA Internal Medicine, found that the 2024–2025 COVID-19 vaccine continued to protect against COVID-19-associated “major adverse cardiovascular events” (MACE), which include cardiovascular death, heart attack, stroke, and hospitalization for heart failure. 这项发表在《美国医学会杂志·内科学》（JAMA Internal Medicine）上的新研究发现，2024-2025年度的新冠疫苗持续对新冠相关的“主要不良心血管事件”（MACE）提供保护，这些事件包括心血管死亡、心脏病发作、中风以及因心力衰竭住院。
The study included electronic medical record data from 1,039,659 patients in the VA’s St. Louis Health Care System. All of the patients received a seasonal flu shot between September 3, 2024, and December 31, 2024, with some also getting a COVID-19 vaccine at the same time. Of the 1,039,659 patients, 349,085 received both shots, while 690,574 got just the flu shot. The latter group acted as the control group for the study. 该研究纳入了VA圣路易斯医疗系统1,039,659名患者的电子病历数据。所有患者在2024年9月3日至2024年12月31日期间都接种了季节性流感疫苗，其中部分患者同时接种了新冠疫苗。在这些患者中，349,085人同时接种了两种疫苗，而690,574人仅接种了流感疫苗。后者作为研究的对照组。
After eight months of follow-up, the researchers looked for documented COVID-19 cases and compared MACE events among the two groups. Overall, the COVID shots’ vaccine effectiveness against MACE events was 38 percent. In terms of absolute numbers, the benefit is modest. The study estimated that the shots dropped the rate of COVID-19-associated MACE events from about 5 in 10,000 to 3 in 10,000. Looking across subgroups, the benefits were strongest among those aged 75 and older and those with underlying health conditions. 经过八个月的随访，研究人员追踪了记录在案的新冠病例，并比较了两组之间的MACE事件。总体而言，新冠疫苗对MACE事件的保护效力为38%。从绝对数值来看，这种益处较为温和。研究估计，疫苗将新冠相关MACE事件的发生率从约万分之五降低到了万分之三。在各亚组中，75岁及以上人群和患有基础疾病的人群获益最为显著。
Neglected benefits
被忽视的益处
The researchers, led by epidemiologist Ziyad Al-Aly at the St. Louis VA, also looked at MACE and deaths without documented COVID-19 cases. Here, the benefits of COVID-19 vaccines were stronger, suggesting COVID-19 cases may have been missed or undiagnosed. The shots appeared to drop the rate of MACE from 382 per 10,000 to 358, and the rate of death from 223 to 207. 由圣路易斯退伍军人事务部流行病学家Ziyad Al-Aly领导的研究团队还观察了未记录新冠病例情况下的MACE和死亡率。结果显示，新冠疫苗的益处更为明显，这表明可能存在未被发现或未被诊断的新冠病例。疫苗似乎将MACE发生率从万分之382降至万分之358，死亡率从万分之223降至万分之207。
“Extrapolating these estimates to a population of 1 million people, vaccination could plausibly be associated with averting approximately 2,370 MACE events and 1,580 deaths over an 8-month period,” the researchers note, though they urge caution in interpreting the finding. The study has limitations, including that most of the US veteran population is older, White, and male, making it likely that the findings can’t be generalized to the whole population. 研究人员指出：“将这些估算推及到100万人口，接种疫苗可能在8个月内避免约2,370起MACE事件和1,580例死亡。”不过，他们也提醒在解读该发现时应保持谨慎。该研究存在局限性，包括美国退伍军人人口大多为高龄、白人和男性，因此这些发现可能无法推广到整个人群。
Still, the findings indicate that the vaccines continue to offer cardiovascular protection against COVID-19, which should factor into people’s decisions on whether to get an annual COVID-19 booster. An accompanying study also published in JAMA Internal Medicine on Monday found the vaccines still directly protect against COVID-19, reducing the risk of hospitalization and critical illness by 35 percent and 41 percent, respectively. 尽管如此，研究结果表明疫苗仍能提供针对新冠病毒的心血管保护，这应成为人们决定是否接种年度新冠加强针时的考量因素。周一发表在《美国医学会杂志·内科学》上的另一项配套研究发现，疫苗仍能直接预防新冠感染，将住院风险和重症风险分别降低了35%和41%。
In an accompanying editorial, Robert Califf, a cardiologist and former Food and Drug Administration commissioner, wrote that the data from the two studies “provide strong evidence of a favorable balance of benefit to risk for updated COVID-19 vaccine boosters across the population.” But, he lamented that despite that strong evidence, national views are being swayed by the “general antivaccination statements from the US Department of Health and Human Services,” which is run by anti-vaccine Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. 在随附的社论中，心脏病专家、前美国食品药品监督管理局（FDA）局长Robert Califf写道，这两项研究的数据“为更新后的新冠疫苗加强针在全人群中具有良好的收益风险比提供了有力证据”。然而，他感叹道，尽管证据确凿，但公众观点正受到“美国卫生与公众服务部（HHS）反疫苗言论”的影响，而该部门目前由反疫苗立场的卫生部长小罗伯特·肯尼迪（Robert F. Kennedy Jr.）领导。
Only 17.5 percent of adults and 22.6 percent of people over age 65 in the US have gotten the 2025–2026 COVID shot, according to federal data. “The politicization of COVID-19 vaccination and messenger RNA vaccines in general has taken a toll on the longevity and functional status of those in the US,” Califf wrote. He called for researchers to collect more data on the vaccine’s benefits and engage with the public about the findings, particularly on social media, to combat anti-vaccine rhetoric. 根据联邦数据，美国仅有17.5%的成年人和22.6%的65岁以上老年人接种了2025-2026年度的新冠疫苗。Califf写道：“新冠疫苗接种以及信使RNA（mRNA）疫苗的政治化，已经对美国人的寿命和健康状况造成了损害。”他呼吁研究人员收集更多关于疫苗益处的数据，并就研究结果与公众进行沟通，特别是在社交媒体上，以对抗反疫苗言论。