CLEVELAND, Ohio — There's a lot of information about how the coronavirus affects the lungs, but what about the heart?

• The American Heart Association is advising caution for people with cardiovascular disease and hypertension
• Data from China shows an increased fatality rate of 10.5 percent for people with cardiovascular disease and 6 percent for those with hypertension
• A UH cardiologist says people who have those conditions should make sure to keep up with their prescriptions, in addition to social distancing and washing hands. 

 Like many doctors across the country, Doctor Eiran Gorodeski’s world has dramatically changed.  
 
“Life seems to have completely flipped upside down in the medical system just like it has for all of us in the U.S.,” said Gorodeski. 
 
Gorodeski is a cardiologist with University Hospitals and says medical experts are learning new information about COVID-19 every day.  
 
"It’s not anything we’ve heard or learned about or dealt with in the medical world. There is a flurry of publications coming out in medical literature on a day by day basis," he said. 
 
The American Heart Association is advising caution for people with cardiovascular disease and hypertension. It says data from China shows an increased fatality rate of 10.5 percent and 6 percent respectively.  
 
"The infection is very taxing on the cardiovascular system," said Gorodeski. "People with preexisting cardiovascular disease just seem to have less of an ability to withstand the stresses on the cardiac system that having severe lung infection can have." 
 
There’s ways for all of us to stay healthy and prevent COVID -19, like social distancing and washing hands. But there are other steps that those with cardiovascular disease and hypertension can take.  
 
"We know that if patients stop taking their medications, they’re at a very high risk for decompensating, for getting worse, and certainly this is not the time where you want to get sicker when you can avoid it, with the healthcare system having, you know switched essentially into war mode." 
 
He also encourages people to take advantage of virtual visits with their doctor, and also keeping a strong mental health. 
 
"Whatever people can do to keep your anxiety and stress under control, whether it’s exercising regularly or using meditation, I think it would be another thing to keep in mind." 
 
The American Heart Association says it’s committing $2.5 million to research efforts to better understand COVID-19 and how it affects the heart.