Aspirin

People experiencing the sharp chest pain of angina can receive care at a community hospital using aspirin and other common drugs that work as well as high-tech treatments at a large medical center, according to a study released yesterday. Unstable angina, which strikes 750,000 Americans annually, is the leading cause of admissions to hospital coronary-care units. Angina pain often signals that insufficient blood is reaching the heart, and can lead to a heart attack and death. According to the study, patients treated with aspirin and other common drugs fared as well as those who received expensive clot-busting drugs and those who receive an angioplasty, in which skinny balloons are inserted to open clogged arteries.

Take two aspirin and weigh me in the morning: Aspirin may soon be part of the "cure" for overweight. According to the latest research, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, aspirin combined with another drug ephedrine (found in over-the-counter asthma and bronchial medications), seems to raise the calorie-burning metabolism of laboratory mice. Aspirin by itself had no effect, but in combination it reduced the body fat of genetically obese mice. More news and views from the medical and professional journals: Fat women use more energy than lean women but lean women work harder at their tasks, indicate findings of another research project reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.

Q: Can you tell me what it is about aspirin that causes stomach ulcers when used over a prolonged period? If aspirin causes stomach ulcers, what does enteric-coated aspirin do to the intestines? A: Aspirin and drugs like it (such as Motrin, Indocin, Lodine, Feldene and Voltaren) can, with prolonged use, cause gastric irritation and bleeding. This is due to direct contact between the drug and the stomach lining, but also - more importantly - because these drugs inhibit the manufacture of prostaglandin.

Although several studies have shown that an aspirin a day can keep a heart attack away, neither the American Heart Association nor the American College of Cardiologists is in favor of all Americans adding an aspirin per day to their diet. Does that surprise you? This is certainly not the message one gets from current ads touting aspirin on TV. Nor from the recent report that Gov. Casey's physicians have prescribed an aspirin a day for him as he recovers from heart surgery.

Aspirin has been called a miracle drug, and rightly so. In addition to being an analgesic, or pain reliever, it can lower fevers and reduce inflammation. A study released in January indicated that an aspirin taken every other day can significantly reduce the risk of heart attack in adult men. And we now learn that it can do as much to help canine and feline coronary problems. James Ross of Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine says, "Aspirin does the same thing in dogs and cats that it does in humans.

A University of Pennsylvania veterinarian advised caution yesterday to dog and cat owners thinking about using aspirin to treat or prevent heart disease in their pets. The long-standing dictum not to give your pet aspirin - and never aspirin substitutes - is still true, according to Dr. Rebecca Kirby, director of emergency service at the Veterinary Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. "Everything stated in the report was true," said Kirby of the study, published in this month's Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine.

The man loitering outside Room 130 of the Media Mini Motel offered the would-be buyer a deal - a "line" of cocaine for only $20. But the deal had a few flaws. The drug was actually crushed aspirin. And the buyer was really an undercover cop. Though the seller, David Millhouse, 23, of Media, was guilty of not choosing his customers wisely, you might think he could not get in too much trouble for selling an item that multitudes take every day to calm headaches, muscle pain and fevers.

Dear Polly: Is it true that an aspirin dissolved in a vase of water will help to preserve cut flowers? - Mary Lou So far as I've been able to determine, this is an old wives' tale and the aspirin will not help. However, I'm told that a little tonic water added to the tap water in the vase will act as a preservative. Make sure you use water labeled "tonic" water, not club soda, as it has added ingredients that club soda does not. Tonic is available in the carbonated beverage aisle at the supermarket.

The makers of aspirin are ecstatic over a recent medical report that indicates an aspirin a day may keep heart attacks away and prevent a recurrence in those who have already had one. That is typical of the Johnny-come-lately responses to major health problems in the United States. If we really wanted to prevent heart attacks, we would change our behavior: eliminate high-fat foods from our diet, exercise regularly, reduce stress. But that's the way medicine and government respond to maladies.

Women may significantly reduce their chance of heart attack if they take between one and six aspirins a week, a major new study concludes. The study, in today's issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), reported that women over age 50 who regularly used aspirin were 32 percent less likely to suffer a first heart attack, and that female aspirin-users of all ages reduced their risk of heart attack by a fourth. Even women who smoked, had a history of high blood pressure or high cholesterol levels experienced a "large reduction" in heart attack risk if they took aspirins, reported the study - a surprising finding that one researcher suggested be downplayed so that women would not jump to the conclusion that aspirin could take the place of good health habits.

A new Fox Chase Cancer Center study provides more evidence that aspirin has cancer-fighting properties. With all the superexpensive, highly targeted cancer drugs that have emerged in recent years, it may come as a surprise that a cheap, over-the-counter drug might prevent or slow cancer. But Mark Buyyounouski, a Fox Chase radiation oncologist who looked at the impact of aspirin on prostate cancer patients, said scientists had been studying aspirin and cancer since the 1970s.

December 1974, the Palestra. Harry Kalas was set to broadcast his first Big 5 game, along with Al Meltzer. Then president of the Temple Loyalists club, I took money from petty cash to buy a small bottle of aspirin before the game. As Harry ascended the steps past our cheering section to the booth above, I called out his name, tossed him the aspirin, and said he'd need it. At halftime I looked up to the booth. Harry looked down, held up the bottle and gave me a thumbs-up. When he left the booth after the game, another Temple fan called out, "Harry, what'd you think?"

Federal regulators yesterday ordered reviews of dozens of ongoing patient studies of the prescription painkillers Celebrex and Bextra in response to recent findings that both drugs may increase the risk of heart attack and stroke. The FDA also issued an advisory urging consumers to follow the instructions on over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain medications such as naproxen, ibuprofen and aspirin, whose labels limit their use to 10 days without a doctor's approval. The advisory, in addition, urges physicians to be highly selective in writing prescriptions for Celebrex and Bextra.

If you're among the 23 million Americans who pop aspirin to ward off heart attacks or strokes, your blood may not be responding to the little white pills. Studies suggest that 5 percent to 30 percent of people are severely resistant to aspirin's anticlotting ability. Now, the little-known problem is attracting scientific attention, although researchers are not yet sure how much it matters, or what to do about it. "It's probably premature for the average cardiologist to change treatment," said Steven Steinhubl, a cardiologist conducting aspirin research at the University of Kentucky in Lexington.

Aspirin, a drug that's been in family medicine cabinets for more than a century now, keeps revealing new tricks. In just the last six months, studies have linked the venerable pain medication with prevention of recurrent strokes in African Americans and lower rates of colon cancer, leukemia and breast cancer. Researchers are examining whether it plays a role in preventing cognitive decline among the elderly and inhibiting other cancers. Aspirin's ability to prevent second heart attacks as well as death or further cardiovascular problems right after a heart attack is well established.

U.S. admits possibility of losing Iraq resolution The United States acknowledged yesterday it might fail to win Security Council backing for action to disarm Iraq, but Baghdad said the effort was a waste of time because Washington was determined to find any pretext for war. The United States introduced its draft resolution on Iraqi disarmament to the full 15-member U.N. Security Council in a push to move to a vote, possibly next week....

People who take aspirin to ward off heart attacks and stroke might be doing themselves no good if they also take ibuprofen for pain. University of Pennsylvania researchers studied 30 people and found that ibuprofen blocks aspirin's heart-protecting effect. Their finding, reported in today's New England Journal of Medicine, could - if confirmed by future studies - have widespread implications. Many people take a daily low-dose aspirin to thin the blood and prevent clots that can cause heart attacks and strokes, and they also use ibuprofen every day to ease arthritis pain and other aches.

More than 100 years after aspirin was invented as a pain reliever, researchers keep discovering good things about it. A daily dose of the little white pill has already been shown to prevent and treat strokes and heart attacks. There is also strong evidence that it cuts the risk of colon cancer. Now, a study by University of Pennsylvania scientists suggests that aspirin may slow down hardening of the arteries, an underlying cause of heart attacks. A separate study at New York University found regular aspirin use lowered the risk of ovarian cancer.