Swine flu and heart disease a deadly mix

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An AP report from the European College of Cardiology Congress in Barcelona says that doctors there warned about the risks of patients with heart disease contracting the pandemic H1N1 influenza virus, commonly known as swine flu. Cardiology patients are particularly susceptible to the effects of influenza and should be among the first to receive vaccinations against the new virus, doctors said.

The good news is that most heart patients are over age 60, a group that appears to be the least susceptible to the new virus because of preexisting immunity to related strains. Nonetheless, such patients should do everything possible to avoid catching the virus, they said.

-- Thomas H. Maugh II