Introduction: Hypertension is one of the most significant risk factors for cardiovascular diseases and a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. During the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in the number of individuals with newly diagnosed hypertension was observed, suggesting a possible association between SARS-CoV-2 infection, immune response, and vascular changes. Aim: To examine a possible association between COVID-19 infection, SARS-CoV-2 vaccination, and the occurrence of hypertension in the adult population. Materials and Methods: The study was conducted using an anonymous questionnaire that included 203 respondents of both sexes and three age categories. Lifestyle factors, previous COVID-19 infection, vaccination status, and the occurrence of hypertension were descriptively analyzed. Results: Of the total 203 respondents, 72.9% were female and 27.1% male. A total of 144 respondents (70.9%) had a history of COVID-19 infection, and 43 individuals (21.2%) had diagnosed hypertension. Among them, 17 individuals (40.5%) initiated antihypertensive therapy within the last 5 years, following COVID-19 infection. A total of 59.1% of respondents were vaccinated, and the majority did not report adverse effects. Conclusion: The results indicate a statistically significant association between COVID-19 infection and increased incidence of hypertension in the post-pandemic period (χ² = 21.3; p 0.001), while vaccination against COVID-19 was not statistically significantly associated with newly developed hypertension.
Filipović et al. (Thu,) studied this question.