Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, March 22, 1990 TAG: 9003221680
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: NEW ORLEANS LENGTH: Medium
Such strokes are triggered by extremely rapid beating of the heart's upper chambers. Blood clots that form inside the heart are launched into the bloodstream and travel to the brain, where they get stuck and choke off the blood supply.
Recent studies have shown that aspirin can dramatically lower the risk of heart attacks, but doctors had said they had little reason to hope that the commonplace medicine could ward off the disastrous effects of clots that arise in the heart.
However, the study in today's New England Journal of Medicine found that people with the heart condition, known as atrial fibrillation, suffered only half as many strokes if they took a single aspirin tablet each day.
"We are talking about a condition that probably causes 200 strokes a day," said co-author Dr. Jonathan L. Halperin of Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York.
"This is an important piece of news when you realize that they may be prevented by something as simple as a daily aspirin."
Until now, the only way to prevent these kinds of strokes was regular use of the drug warfarin, a blood thinner that is a common ingredient of rat poison. While often used for severe atrial fibrillation caused by damaged heart valves, many doctors are reluctant to prescribe the medicine for milder cases because of the possibility of severe bleeding.
An estimated 1.2 million Americans have atrial fibrillation. The condition often goes unrecognized unless diagnosed on an electrocardiogram. While it can cause chest palpitations, these fluttery sensations are usually unrelated to atrial fibrillation.
"We need to change policy about how to treat this common condition. We have found something substantial," said another co-author, Dr. David C. Anderson of Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis.
A stroke specialist who did not participate in the study said the results mean that aspirin may be an alternative for people who cannot take warfarin. But Dr. Louis Caplan of New England Medical Center cautioned: "The actual amount of the effect and whether it is superior to warfarin and in which patients are unclear."
The aspirin findings were based on a comparison study conducted on 1,244 people at 17 U.S. medical centers. A preliminary report was being published in the journal and was to be discussed today at the annual meeting of the American College of Cardiology in New Orleans.
by CNB