In this Article

• What is aspirin?
• What are antiplatelet agents and how do they work?
• What is dipyridamole?
• When is aspirin used for preventing and treating heart attacks and strokes?
• Treatment of heart attacks
• Treatment of exertional and unstable angina
• Treatment of ischemic strokes
• How effective is aspirin for preventing heart attacks among healthy subjects?
• What are the side effects of aspirin?
• What is aspirin allergy?
• What is the optimal dose of aspirin for treating and preventing heart attacks and strokes?
• Who should be taking aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes?
• Who should not be taking aspirin?
• What interactions might aspirin have with other medications?
• What can be done to reduce the risk of ulcers from long-term aspirin use?
• What are the limitations of aspirin treatment?
• What is aspirin resistance?
• What is in the future for the research on aspirin resistance?
• Aspirin and Antiplatelet Medications Glossary
• Aspirin and Antiplatelet Medications Index

Who should be taking aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes?

Even though aspirin is available without a doctor's prescription and has been used safely for many years by patients for fever and pain, patients should NOT take aspirin on a long-term basis without consulting with their doctor.

Aspirin prevents blood clots from forming inside arteries affected by atherosclerosis, but aspirin does not prevent atherosclerosis. Other measures (losing excess weight, controlling high blood pressure and diabetes, lowering LDL cholesterol, increasing HDL cholesterol, and stopping cigarette smoking) are necessary to prevent atherosclerosis.

Most doctors now recommend low doses of aspirin long-term for patients with advanced atherosclerosis for secondary prevention purposes. Such patients include those with:

• prior heart attacks
  
  
• prior strokes
  
  
• exertional and unstable angina
  
  
• TIAs (transient ischemic attack, mini-stroke)
  
  
• peripheral vascular disease (poor artery blood flow to the legs)
  
  
• vascular procedures such as PTCA and CABG

Doctors also consider low dose aspirin in patients at risk for atherosclerosis because they:

• Have high blood LDL cholesterol
  
  
• Are males over 45 or are postmenopausal or over 55 females
  
  
• Have high blood pressure (hypertension) after high blood pressure is controlled with medications
  
  
• Use tobacco
  
  
• Have diabetes mellitus
  
  
• Have a family history of coronary heart disease

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