Taking an aspirin a day reduces the risk of stroke among patients at high risk of having one, according to an analysis of several clinical trials that examined aspirin’s effect on stroke prevention.
“We found that low-dose aspirin reduced (the) incidence of heart attack, stroke and death,” said Dr. Jeffrey Berger, one of the cardiologists at the Duke University Medical Center, who analyzed six clinical trials, involving a total of 9,853 patients.
The analysis found a 25 percent reduction of stroke events among patients who are taking aspirin.
Aspirin is recommended either as a primary or secondary preventive medication for stroke based on the American Heart Association (AHA) guidelines.
It works as a blood-thinning agent to improve blood flow and circulation. With blood thinners, also called antiplatelet agents, risk of blood clotting in the arteries of the brain and other vital organs is minimized helping prevent stroke or brain attack.
A Brigham and Women’s Hospital study involving 70,000 female nurses who were given a daily dose of aspirin, found that those who took six aspirins or below per week reduced the risk of ischemic strokes or stroke caused by blood clots.
Meanwhile, those who took more than 15 aspirins per week had an increased risk of having hemorrhagic stroke or stroke caused by bleeding of the blood vessels in the brain.
“It may take only very low doses of aspirin, as low as one tablet per day or every other day… to have some benefits”, said Dr. Joann Manson, lead researcher of the study.
Aspirin’s blood-thinning effect can increase the risk of vessels bleeding as it lowers the clotting ability of the platelets. However, in lower doses, the bleeding risk may significantly reduce the risk of hemorrhagic stroke while preventing ischemic stroke.
Manson recommends aspirin as a secondary preventive medication against the recurrence of stroke. However, regarding the use of aspirin by healthy people for primary prevention, Manson still recommends more studies to fully establish this theory.
“It is important for patients to discuss with their physicians whether their risk factor status would suggest that aspirin might be beneficial in primary prevention,” Manson said.
Low-dose Cor-30 is a heart-shaped aspirin that is recommended for daily administration. It has minimal bleeding adverse effects but has been shown by clinical studies to be effective and comparable in efficacy to higher doses of its kind.
Cor-30 is manufactured by Pascual Laboratories Inc. and is available in leading drugstores nationwide.
Patients are advised to always consult their doctor for the best preventive medication for their condition.