Discontinue Aspirin After Hospitalization For Bleeding Peptic Ulcer?

Because of its ulcerogenic effects, aspirin is often discontinued in patients who present with bleeding peptic ulcers. In deciding whether to resume or discontinue aspirin after hospitalization, how do clinicians weigh the risk of ulcer bleeding with that of a thrombotic event?

To address this question, investigators in Sweden retrospectively reviewed the records of 118 patients discharged from a single center with a diagnosis of peptic ulcer disease who were on a low-dose aspirin therapy regimen (75–160 mg daily) prior to admission. They assessed whether discontinuation of aspirin therapy after discharge was associated with increased risk for death or acute cardiovascular (CV) events.

During a median follow-up of 24.4 months (range, 0.2–54.8…