Doctors find link between aspirin, brain aneurysms which could help those at risk of stroke

Researchers with the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics say they have found a new reason for people to take aspirin on a regular basis.

Doctors nationwide currently recommend taking baby aspirin as a way to help with heart health, reducing the risk of a heart attack. Doctors at UIHC's neurosurgery clinic say it could also help control brain aneurysms, which often form after someone suffers a stroke.

A team of doctors, including Dr. David Hasan, Dr. James Torner, and residents including Dr. Mario Zanaty, researched data from the clinic's own patients over a ten-year span. What they found could reverse a trend about aspirin among doctors nationwide.

"This is huge," Zanaty said. He is in his fifth year of residency with UIHC. "We think this could prevent unnecessary surgery."

Dr. Zanaty said that after 10 years of research, their findings showed aspirin could help those that have had, or are at risk of having, a stroke.

"Stroke is the number one public health issue right now," Zanaty said. "And a lot of these patients, they smoke, they have diabetes, they have other problems. If some of them have aneurysm, their physicians are a bit worried of giving them aspirin."

Doctors found aspirin can slow the growth of brain aneurysms, often occurring from a stroke.

"What was interesting is that if you're taking aspirin, baby aspirin or full-dose aspirin, you have 80 percent less chance of your aneurysm growing," Zanaty said. "What this means, for every 100 patients, you can save 80 of them by giving them aspirin. So you would prevent 80 surgeries."

Zanaty said that in turn could have a major impact on people that are at risk and could reverse a popular belief among doctors providing treatment for aneurysms.

"A lot of time they don't give them aspirin, they're like: 'you have an aneurysm, we don't want you to rupture and cause problems,'" Zanaty said. "So now we know that aspirin is actually protective, so you shouldn't shy away from aspirin because someone has an aneurysm. And that by itself is something big."

Zanaty said these findings could help many from needing surgery and allowing many to live longer lives.

"Aspirin is a very benign drug and it has such a drastic effect," Zanaty said.

Zanaty said a larger study is still needed to confirm their findings, but these results were found after reviewing scientific data, studying animals, and now humans.