daily aspirin therapy prevents a recurrent problem in men and women who already have heart disease says [lori mosca md phd director preventive cardiology new york-presbyterian hospital new york city]. but “there is softening of the [2011 american heart association] guidelines when it comes to aspirin as a way of preventing heart disease in otherwise healthy women. ” “the decision about aspirin should take into consideration if she has controlled blood pressure or any risk of gastrointestinal bleeding because these are aspirin side effects that are very common and we don’t want doctors to just jump on it and tell all women to take an aspirin a day ” she says. “we now understand that while women have been shown to respond similarly to men for many interventions they may have different side-effect profiles ” she says. many women are not taking medications as prescribed or recommended because of side effects or fear of side effects.
what should women know about aspirin therapy for heart disease?