Loading...
Despite taking aspirin daily, many patients with established cardiovascular disease experience myocardial infarction, stroke, or cardiovascular death. “Aspirin resistance” — persistent platelet reactivity despite aspirin therapy — could account for some of these events. Few researchers, however, have assessed how aspirin resistance affects outcomes in patients with cardiovascular disease.
Canadian investigators conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of 20 studies of aspirin (in doses of 75–325 mg daily, alone or with another antiplatelet agent) involving 2930 patients with established cardiovascular disease. All studies included direct laboratory measure of platelet function. Overall, 810 patients (28%) exhibited aspirin resistance.…