Aspirin Use Tied to Incident Heart Failure in At-Risk Adults

MONDAY, Nov. 29, 2021 (HealthDay News) — For individuals at risk, aspirin use is associated with increased risk for incident heart failure, according to a study published online Nov. 22 in ESC Heart Failure.

Blerim Mujaj, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of Leuven in Belgium, and colleagues conducted a pooled analysis of data from a total of 30,827 individuals (mean age, 66.8 ± 9.2 years) at risk for heart failure who were enrolled in six observational studies. Patients were followed for the first incident of fatal or nonfatal heart failure. The association of incident heart failure with aspirin use was examined.

The researchers found that 1,330 patients experienced heart failure during a median of 5.3 years. The hazard ratio for heart failure in association with aspirin use was 1.26 in fully adjusted analyses and 1.26 in a propensity-score-matched analysis. For the 22,690 patients without cardiovascular disease history, the hazard ratio associated with aspirin use was 1.27.

“Aspirin is commonly used — in our study one in four participants were taking the medication. In this population, aspirin use was associated with incident heart failure, independent of other risk factors,” Mujaj said in a statement. “Large multinational randomized trials in adults at risk for heart failure are needed to verify these results. Until then, our observations suggest that aspirin should be prescribed with caution in those with heart failure or with risk factors for the condition.”

The study was partially funded by OMRON Healthcare.

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