I have angina – am I at increased risk from coronavirus?

If you have angina that is controlled by medicines, and that does not cause you frequent or severe symptoms, this is still coronary heart disease and means you’re at high risk from coronavirus. This means if you catch coronavirus you are more likely to get seriously ill than other people who don’t have health issues.

If you’re also over 70, or also have lung or kidney disease, you’re at particularly high risk.

If you have angina that limits your daily life or means you frequently have to use your GTN spray or tablets under the tongue, or is unpredictable, you are considered particularly high risk.

If you have microvascular angina (sometimes referred to as cardiac syndrome X) or coronary artery spasm (also called vasospastic angina, variant angina or Prinzmetal angina), then you have heart disease and are classed as high risk. If you’re also over 70, or also have lung or kidney disease, you’re at particularly high risk.

Whether you’re at high risk or particularly high risk, you can reduce your risk of catching coronavirus. You should carefully follow the advice on social distancing and hand-washing, and limit the number of face-to-face interactions you have to reduce your chance of catching the virus. Having angina on its own does not place you in the shielding category.

You should carry on working from home if you can, but you can go to work if your workplace is Covid-secure.