Vaccination as a new form of cardiovascular prevention: a European Society of Cardiology clinical consensus statement

Bettina Heidecker^{1

2

3}, Peter Libby⁴, Vassilios S Vassiliou⁵, François Roubille⁶, Orly Vardeny⁷, Christian Hassager^{8

9}, Michael A Gatzoulis¹⁰, Mamas A Mamas¹¹, Leslie T Cooper¹², Felix Schoenrath^{2

13}, Marco Metra¹⁴, Offer Amir¹⁵, Scott D Solomon¹⁶, Ulf Landmesser^{1

17}, Thomas F Lüscher^{18

19}

Affiliations

¹ Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité Berlin, Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, Berlin, Germany.
² DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), Partner Site Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
³ Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany.
⁴ Brigham and Women's Hospital, Heart and Vascular Center of Mass General Brigham, Boston, MA, USA.
⁵ University of East Anglia, Norwich Medical School, Bob Champion Research and Education, Norwich, UK.
⁶ University of Montpellier, INSERM, Department of Cardiology, Montpellier, France.
⁷ Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
⁸ Rigshospitalet, Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen, Denmark.
⁹ Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
¹⁰ Royal Brompton Hospital and Imperial College, London, UK.
¹¹ Keele Cardiovascular Research Group, Department of Cardiology, Staffordshire, UK.
¹² Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA.
¹³ Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité Berlin, Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Berlin, Germany.
¹⁴ University of Brescia, Cardiology ASST Spedali Civili and Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences and Public Health, Brescia, Italy.
¹⁵ Heart Institute, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
¹⁶ Brigham and Women's Hospital, Department of Cardiology, Boston, MA, USA.
¹⁷ Friede Springer Cardiovascular Prevention Center at Charité, Berlin, Germany.
¹⁸ Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals GSTT, Cardiovascular Academic Group, King's College and Imperial College London, Department of Cardiology, London, UK.
¹⁹ Center for Molecular Cardiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.

PMID: 40582710
DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf384

Practice Guideline

Vaccination as a new form of cardiovascular prevention: a European Society of Cardiology clinical consensus statement

Bettina Heidecker et al. Eur Heart J. 2025.

. 2025 Sep 22;46(36):3518-3531.

doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf384.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité Berlin, Department of Cardiology, Angiology and Intensive Care, Berlin, Germany.
² DZHK (German Centre for Cardiovascular Research), Partner Site Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
³ Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Germany.
⁴ Brigham and Women's Hospital, Heart and Vascular Center of Mass General Brigham, Boston, MA, USA.
⁵ University of East Anglia, Norwich Medical School, Bob Champion Research and Education, Norwich, UK.
⁶ University of Montpellier, INSERM, Department of Cardiology, Montpellier, France.
⁷ Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA.
⁸ Rigshospitalet, Department of Cardiology, Copenhagen, Denmark.
⁹ Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
¹⁰ Royal Brompton Hospital and Imperial College, London, UK.
¹¹ Keele Cardiovascular Research Group, Department of Cardiology, Staffordshire, UK.
¹² Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL, USA.
¹³ Deutsches Herzzentrum der Charité Berlin, Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Berlin, Germany.
¹⁴ University of Brescia, Cardiology ASST Spedali Civili and Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences and Public Health, Brescia, Italy.
¹⁵ Heart Institute, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel.
¹⁶ Brigham and Women's Hospital, Department of Cardiology, Boston, MA, USA.
¹⁷ Friede Springer Cardiovascular Prevention Center at Charité, Berlin, Germany.
¹⁸ Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals GSTT, Cardiovascular Academic Group, King's College and Imperial College London, Department of Cardiology, London, UK.
¹⁹ Center for Molecular Cardiology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.

PMID: 40582710
DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehaf384

Abstract

Vaccination is increasingly acknowledged as an effective preventive measure not only against specific infections, but also for the prevention of cardiovascular disease in high-risk patients. Specifically, a growing body of evidence suggests that vaccines against influenza, SARS-CoV-2, respiratory syncytial virus, herpes zoster, and other viruses significantly reduce infection and for influenza the incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events in vaccinated individuals. This clinical consensus statement examines the existing literature and accumulated evidence and offers practical clinical advice on vaccination timing and target demographics, specifically addressing complex clinical scenarios with a focus on cardiovascular conditions. It includes guidelines for vaccinating vulnerable populations such as immunosuppressed individuals, patients with congenital heart disease, and pregnant women as well as safety and potential complications of the procedure.

Keywords: COVID-19; Infection; Influenza; Pneumococcus; Respiratory syncytial virus.

© European Society of Cardiology 2025. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Society of Cardiology. All rights reserved. For commercial re-use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.

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Vaccination as a new form of cardiovascular prevention: a European Society of Cardiology clinical consensus statement

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Vaccination as a new form of cardiovascular prevention: a European Society of Cardiology clinical consensus statement

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Abstract

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Medical

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