Aspirin: Risks And Benefits

Steven Novella has posted on the Science-Based Medicine blog regarding the recent report of risks from taking aspirin as a preventive.

The main points:

• For those who have diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or a strong family history of heart attack or stroke, the benefit of daily aspirin may still outweigh the risks. This means if you were placed on aspirin by your doctor and you have one or more of the above risk factors, this latest study should not make you stop taking aspirin – although you might want to revisit the question with your doctor to see if their recommendations for you have changed.
• Official recommendations are to individualize the decision whether or not to use aspirin for primary prevention based upon age, risk of bleeding, and risk factors for vascular disease.
• This demonstrates the attention and effort that science-based medicine dedicates to preventing disease and morbidity. All of this stands in direct contrast to the propaganda of those who oppose science-based medicine.