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+--- Thread: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? (/showthread.php?tid=188141)
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - raz - 02-16-2016
Yes. My cardiologist insists. She saved my life, so who am I to argue?
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - Dennis S - 02-16-2016
I'm going to ask my doctor about it Monday. I talked to a druggist who said he changed his mind about it and is now a firm believer.
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - SKYLANE - 02-16-2016
82 mg per day... doctor recommended based on family history (my dad had open heart surgery twice, and so did his mother)
However, heart scans that I have done so far at HeartSavers in Irvine CA suggest that I am not on same path as they were. Thank goodness.
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - graylocks - 02-16-2016
tronnei wrote:
Yes, my doctor is a big believer in it. Two-year supply is $5 at Costco.
:wiggle: same here.
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - pdq - 02-16-2016
The big initial impetus was the Physicians Health Study, which put a ton of docs on one 325 mg aspirin a day, beta carotene, or both. There was such a dramatic reduction (-44%) in MI in the group that was taking aspirin that that part of the study was ended early. Of note, there was no significant increase in bleeding or stroke in the aspirin group (yay!) but there was also no significant decrease in all-cause cardiovascular mortality. Hm.
Still, that 44% reduction in MI was big news. In contrast, beta carotene (antioxidant - think carrots, other yellow veg). had no effect, nor did Vitamin C or E supplementation in a later Doctors study that looked at heart disease, cancer, and other endpoints.
Current theory/speculation seems to be that low-dose aspirin reduces overall levels of inflammation in the body, which appears to be a risk factor for MI (and maybe cancer). (The current blood test for this inflammation is called high-sensitivity C reactive protein). If you don't have much inflammation at baseline, then aspirin probably doesn't do much for your heart. But risk of side effects is generally low, and recent studies suggest it may decrease the risk of colon cancer (and perhaps others) as well.
It was all enough for me. I've been taking one baby aspirin a day for years now.
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - mstudio - 02-16-2016
Yes, a low dose for me, too. Is there a reason you are asking?
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - OWC Jamie - 02-16-2016
As I'm still healthy every doctor I've talked to has recommended taking ibuprofen and save the aspirin taking for when I'm older and a doctor both recommends it for the maintenance health effects it can offer and to also be careful that there are side effect to be aware of for both taking with other meds and with doctor's knowledge of other health issues you may or may not be having.
To be taking any kind of meds with out your primary physician's knowledge and blessing is as short sighted as not taking vaccines as recommended.
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - GuyGene - 02-16-2016
Si. Same 81 mg as most here. Or just chew willow bark.
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - Dennis S - 02-16-2016
mstudio wrote:
Yes, a low dose for me, too. Is there a reason you are asking?
Because I get both sides of the story when I research it and my doctor's opinion is not the final word. It's a big word but not the final one. I like getting opinions from smart people, many who have gotten their opinions from their doctors (you know who you are.) So I guess it's a meta thing.
Re: Anyone here take aspirin for their heart? - Diana - 02-16-2016
I did. Then, after more testing, the doctor changed his mind.
I had an episode of vertigo back in April of last year. I thought it was BPPV, a benign vertigo issue of the inner ear involving crystals building up in the inner ear and making one quite dizzy. It wasn't that at all, as the later MRIs showed. I had a small stroke. Apparently, there is a hole between the two sides of the heart, one that is there during the development of the fetus; this normally closes when the lungs fill with air at birth and the heart pumps blood through the lungs instead of bypassing them as is the state with the fetus. Mine didn't close, and apparently some plaque or something built up on the edges of this opening. A small amount of "stuff" broke off and caused the stroke.
Some 25% of the population has this "hole in the heart" issue.
Now I'm taking a blood thinner (Xarelto). The neurologist said that the aspirin was not indicated in my case, as it didn't do as what was apparently needed and the Xarelto did. I chose it instead of coumadin, as I only have to take it once a day and the monitoring is simpler. Xarelto affects the clotting factors you produce but doesn't affect the platelets, and this is apparently the desired result.
My neurologist a big believer in a cholesterol medication as well as a blood pressure medication; he has me on them as well at the lowest dose possible. He said he's on them as well. There is some studies that show that people who are currently taking them have a better outcome than those who don't.
Oh, BTW, if you are thinking that I should have the surgery to close the hole, there is additional evidence that there is no benefit for doing so.