When it comes to negative stuff, we have a tendency to focus on death in this country. I don’t think there’s any particular reason for it. It’s probably just human nature. Take 9/11 for example. 2,977 Americans died in the terror attacks that day. For those of us otherwise removed from the attacks, there’s a tendency to think that was the extent of the human toll that day. It wasn’t. By the end of 2018 more than 3,000 additional Americans were found to have died from the effects of what they were exposed to that day, including hundreds of first responders. In the end, more Americans died due to the terror attacks afterward than during the actual attacks. This type of focus is true when it comes to our military and police. You might hear about the deaths of those who die in service of our country but what about those who are permanently injured?
According to the FBI database and the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial Fund, an average of 158 law enforcement professionals die annually in the line of duty. Furthermore, an average of 13,659 law enforcement professionals are injured in the line of duty per year.
That paints a much more dramatic picture of those who often have their lives permanently impacted due to their service. But this story is supposed to be about the virus. I was laying the groundwork for a new study published in the medical journal JAMA. The study evaluated the cardiovascular systems of 100 recovered COVID-19 patients. Only two of which were in critical condition requiring a ventilator. The study found that 78% had a potentially permanent cardiovascular condition and that in the most common diagnosis, 60% of the recovered patients was myocardial inflammation.
Given that heart disease is already the top killer of men in the United States, this clearly isn’t ideal news. Much like the examples of 9/11 or law enforcement deaths vs injuries, we could experience more Americans who die from the effects of the virus later on, than those directly killed by the virus. The biggest takeaway is this. Healthy or not, asymptomatic or not, it’s best not to tempt fate with the virus. Odds are even if your symptoms are mild – it’ll leave an impact on, or inside of you, as the case may be.
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