NEW evidence shows that aspirin could save more than 7000 lives a year
in the UK and 100,000 worldwide through its ability to prevent blood
clots forming.
Results of international studies involving 140,000 patients in 300
clinical trials published today suggest long-term therapy should be
considered for almost everyone at risk of heart failure or a stroke.
Just half an aspirin a day can help people who have suffered heart
attacks or strokes.
Although doctors knew of the ability of aspirin to prevent blood
clots, the new evidence shows an even wider range of patients would be
helped, according to a report in the British Medical Journal.
Dr Rory Collins, British Heart Foundation senior research fellow and
co-director of the Clinical Trial Service Unit at Oxford, said: ''The
evidence of benefit is now clear for a wide range of people who are at
high risk of heart attack or stroke.
''We now know that aspirin works about as well for women as for men,
for the elderly as for the middle-aged, for those with high blood
pressure as well as those with normal blood pressure and in diabetics
and non-diabetics.''
Meanwhile, a team of scientists today warned that measuring
cholesterol levels should not be used as a method of screening for
future heart disease deaths.
They have found up to three-quarters of heart disease deaths in this
country would not have been predicted through cholesterol screening.
People could also receive false assurances from measuring their
cholesterol level.
The findings of the study, reported in The Lancet and carried out by
scientists from St Bartholemew's Hospital, London, working with
researchers in the United States, are based on a 12-year study of 21,500
men in the UK.
They conclude that cholesterol measurement is ''too unreliable'' to be
a satisfactory method of prediction.
The study showed tests cannot discriminate accurately enough for
doctors to recommend changes in lifestyle, diet, or possible life-long
drug therapy.
Most people in the UK have cholesterol levels that are too high.
Researchers found there was too little variation between people in the
UK, for screening to be effective in preventing heart disease.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article