Many people over 60 still take aspirin for their heart, despite warnings

Many people over 60 still take aspirin for their heart, despite warnings

In 2019, the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association noted that aspirin’s potential risks outweighed its slight prevention benefit.

Nearly 30 percent (29.7) of those over age 60 still take a daily low dose of aspirin, despite guidelines advising against the drug’s use as a primary way of preventing cardiovascular disease, a recent study says.

The research, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine on June 25, examined trends in aspirin use from 2012 to 2021 with data drawn from the National Health Interview Survey.

Researchers looked at data from just over 186,400 people age 40 years or older; 53 percent of those studied were women and 31 percent were non-White.

By inhibiting platelet function that contributes to clotting, aspirin can reduce the risk of formation of clots on top of fatty plaques inside arteries, lessening the chances of a heart attack or stroke.

Evidence such as this led the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in 2002 to strongly recommend that health-care professionals consider the use of aspirin with adults at risk for heart disease.

But updated guidelines issued by the American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association in 2019 note that potential risks of aspirin use, including gastrointestinal bleeding, outweigh its slight prevention benefit.

“Aspirin should be used infrequently in the routine primary prevention” of cardiovascular disease because of a “lack of net benefit,” the American Heart Association said in 2019.

“Generally, primary prevention aspirin for adults older than 60 years is discouraged,” said Mohak Gupta, the article’s lead researcher and a cardiovascular medicine fellow at Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart and Vascular Center, “but aspirin, or another anti-platelet drug, use is still strongly recommended for those with known cardiovascular disease.”

However, Gupta added, patients should talk to their doctors before stopping their daily aspirin.

This article is part of The Post’s “Big Number” series, which takes a brief look at the statistical aspect of health issues. Additional information and relevant research are available through the hyperlinks.