New scientific research shows that the side effects of aspirin could manifest in heart failure if there are predisposing risk factors. According to the study authors, the risk of taking the drug increases if you smoke, are obese, have high blood pressure,high cholesterol levels, diabetes and cardiovascular disease by 26%. However, given the study results, researchers should confirm the possible links to heart failure in further research.
Incidence of heart disease due to the side effects of aspirin
The influence of aspirin on heart failure is controversial. The new study primarily aimed to evaluate the possible link with the incidence of heart failure in people with and without heart disease. In addition, the authors wanted to assess whether aspirin use was associated with later diagnosed heart disease in high-risk patients. Participants were 40 years of age and older and free of heart failure at baseline. The study authors recorded drug intake when subjects enrolled. Accordingly, they classified the study participants as aspirin users or non-users. The team followed up participants for the first occurrence of fatal or non-fatal heart failure requiring hospitalization. The average age of the subjects was 67 years and 34% were women. A total of 7698 participants (25%) were taking aspirin at baseline. During the follow-up of 5.3 years, 1330 of them developed heart failure.
To further verify the results, the research team repeated their analysis after excluding patients with a history of cardiovascular disease. In 22,690 participants (74%) without cardiovascular disease, aspirin use was associated with a 27% increased risk of heart failure. This was the first large study to examine the association between aspirin use and heart failure in people with and without heart disease and at least one risk factor. In this study population, aspirin side effects were associated with heart failure independent of other risk factors. The researchers concluded that large multinational randomized trials are needed to verify these results. Until then lay downthis studysuggests that aspirin should be used with caution by patients with risk factors for heart disease.
