foodconsumer.org: Daily Aspirin Regimen May Not be Prudent for Healthy People

Daily Aspirin Regimen May Not be Prudent for Healthy People
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admin on 09/15/2009 22:26:00
 
By Rachel Stockton
An article in the journal Lancet is reporting on a large, British study on the
efficacy of taking 80 mg of aspirin a day to help prevent heart attack. The
results may change the way the medical community and patients themselves view
the aspirin regimen.
Purportedly, aspirin increases the risk of serious gastric bleeding just as much
as it reduces the risk of heart attack.
For over a decade, physicians have recommended a low aspirin dose not only for
those who have already suffered a heart attack, but also those who have a lower
risk.  Such a recommendation for healthy people is designated “primary
prevention.”  It’s among this particular group that an aspirin regimen may
not be prudent.
The research to make this determination was extensive, and included 22 studies
and 100,000 participants.
Patients were divided into two groups:  those at a low risk for a vascular
event, such as heart attack or stroke, and those who were at a high risk.
Researchers determined that for those who had never had a vascular event, there
were 5 fewer such events per year, per 10,000 people taking aspirin daily. 
Additionally, there were 3 extra cases of gastric bleeding.
For the high risk group, however, the aspirin prevented 150 vascular events per
10,000 people.  Recommending aspirin for patients who already have had a heart
attack or stroke, called secondary prevention, is considered to still be a
judicious call.
Physicians began suggesting aspirin for those with high cholesterol levels
before the advent of statins, which can safely reduce risk without the
increasing chances of gastric bleeding.  Also, when aspirin is given in
conjunction with these drugs, risk is only reduced by about half as much as when
the statins are prescribed alone.  However, the bleeding risk remains the same.
In summary, the authors of the study conclude:  ‘Aspirin is of clear benefit
for people who already have cardiovascular disease, but the latest research does
not seem to justify general guidelines advocating the routine use of aspirin in
all healthy individuals above a moderate level of risk for coronary heart
disease.’