Taking aspirin can spike your heart failure risk, reveals new study

If findings of a new research are to be believed, consuming aspirin is associated with a 26 per cent increased risk of heart failure.

Smoking, obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes and cardiovascular disease, are other factors associated with high risk of heart failure.

Research on link between aspirin and heart failure risk

The research findings, published in the ‘ESC Heart Failure Journal’, require confirmation but hint at a potential link between aspirin and heart failure. This, however, needs to be clarified, said study author Dr Blerim Mujaj of the University of Freiburg, Germany.

“This is the first study to report that among individuals with at least one risk factor for heart failure, those taking aspirin were more likely to subsequently develop the condition than those not using the medication,” added Mujaj.

The influence of aspirin on heart failure is controversial. This study aimed to evaluate its relationship with heart failure incidence in people with and without heart disease and assessed whether using the drug is related to a new heart failure diagnosis in those at risk.

The analysis included 30,827 individuals (average age 67) at risk for developing heart failure who were enrolled from Western Europe and the US into the HOMAGE study.

Taking aspirin was independently associated with a 26 per cent raised risk of a new heart failure diagnosis.

Use it with caution

Aspirin is a commonly used medication for relieving minor aches, pains, and fevers. But based on the observations of the study, Mujaj suggests that it should be prescribed with caution in those with heart failure or with risk factors for the condition.

Interestingly, past studies have revealed how taking aspirin can benefit patients with certain conditions.

As per a European Respiratory Journal study by Dr Fergus Hamilton and colleagues at the University of Bristol, UK, aspirin can reduce the risk of serious cardiovascular events such as ischemic stroke and myocardial infarction (MI – heart attack) in patients with pneumonia.

Another study by researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM), indicated that hospitalised Covid-19 patients who take a daily low-dose of the medication have a significantly lower risk of complications and death.

A separate research, led by the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute (MCRI) and published in The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, discovered that aspirin is a safer way to prevent clots in kids than warfarin.

(With inputs from ANI)