May 13, 2024

Taking Aspirin Could Be Doing More Harm Than Good

Aspirin use amongst clients fell by 46.6% during the research study intervention. The risk of a bleeding problem decreased by 32.3% when aspirin was used less frequently, which relates to one significant bleeding occasion being averted for every 1,000 clients who stop taking aspirin.” While aspirin is an incredibly important medicine, it has a less widely utilized function than it did a decade ago,” Barnes said. “But with each study, we are seeing that there are far less cases in which patients who are already on an anticoagulant are seeing benefit by including aspirin on top of that treatment.

Over 6,700 clients who were being treated for embolism (venous thromboembolism) and atrial fibrillation (irregular heart rhythm that can lead to stroke) at anticoagulation clinics in Michigan were studied by scientists. Regardless of not having a history of heart disease, clients were offered aspirin in addition to the common blood thinner warfarin as part of their treatment.
” We know that aspirin is not a remedy drug as it was as soon as thought to be and can in fact lead to more bleeding events in some of these patients, so we worked with the centers to minimize aspirin use among clients for whom it might not be necessary,” stated Geoffrey Barnes, M.D., senior author of the research study and a cardiologist at the University of Michigan Health Frankel Cardiovascular.
Aspirin usage among patients fell by 46.6% during the research study intervention. The threat of a bleeding problem reduced by 32.3% when aspirin was utilized less frequently, which relates to one significant bleeding event being avoided for every 1,000 patients who stop taking aspirin. The research study was just recently released in the journal JAMA Network Open.
” When we began this study, there was currently an effort by physicians to decrease aspirin usage, and our findings show that speeding up that reduction prevents severe bleeding complications which, in turn, can be lifesaving for patients,” stated Barnes, who is likewise an associate teacher of internal medicine at U-M Medical School. “Its truly essential for doctors and health systems to be more cognizant about when patients on a blood thinner should and must not be using aspirin.”
This de-escalation of aspirin use is based upon a number of research studies that found concerning links between the concurrent usage of aspirin and different blood slimmers.
One research study reported that clients taking warfarin and aspirin for atrial fibrillation and VTE experienced more significant bleeding occasions and had more ER check outs for bleeding than those taking warfarin alone. Comparable results happened for clients taking aspirin and direct oral anticoagulants– who were discovered most likely to have a bleeding event but not less most likely to have a blood clot.
” While aspirin is an incredibly crucial medication, it has a less extensively utilized role than it did a years ago,” Barnes stated. “But with each study, we are seeing that there are far fewer cases in which patients who are currently on an anticoagulant are seeing advantage by adding aspirin on top of that treatment. The blood thinner they are taking is currently providing some defense from clots forming.”
For some individuals, aspirin can be lifesaving. Many clients who have a history of ischemic stroke, cardiac arrest, or a stent placed in the heart to enhance blood circulation– along with those with a history of cardiovascular disease– gain from the medication.
The obstacle comes when some people take aspirin without a history of cardiovascular disease and are likewise prescribed an anticoagulant, stated very first author Jordan Schaefer, M.D., a hematologist at U-M Health and clinical associate professor of internal medicine at U-M Medical School.
” Many of these people were most likely taking aspirin for primary prevention of cardiac arrest or stroke, which we now know is less effective than as soon as believed, and no one took them off of it when they started warfarin,” Schaefer stated. “These findings reveal how essential it is to only take aspirin under the instructions of your physician and not to begin taking over-the-counter medications like aspirin until you examine with your care team if the anticipated benefit outweighs the danger.”
Reference: “Assessment of an Intervention to Reduce Aspirin Prescribing for Patients Receiving Warfarin for Anticoagulation” by Jordan K. Schaefer, MD, Josh Errickson, Ph.D., Xiaokui Gu, MD, MA, Tina Alexandris-Souphis, RN, Mona A. Ali, PharmD, Brian Haymart, REGISTERED NURSE, MS, Scott Kaatz, DO, MSc, Eva Kline-Rogers, MS, REGISTERED NURSE, NP, Jay H. Kozlowski, MD, Gregory D. Krol, MD, Vinay Shah, MD, Suman L. Sood, MD, MSCE, James B. Froehlich, MD, MPH and Geoffrey D. Barnes, MD, MS, 19 September 2022, JAMA Network Open.DOI: 10.1001/ jamanetworkopen.2022.31973.
The research study was funded by the Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan..

These outcomes highlight how crucial it is to just take aspirin on your doctors orders and to hold off beginning any over the counter medications like aspirin till you have talked about whether the anticipated benefit surpasses the threat.
According to current research study, stopping making use of aspirin while taking a blood thinner minimizes the risk of bleeding.
If you already take one, current research shows that you might not require to take a second blood thinner.
In truth, a Michigan Medicine research study reveals that clients threat of bleeding complications significantly decreases when they stop taking aspirin while utilizing a frequently prescribed blood thinner.