Compendial status
United States Pharmacopeia
British Pharmacopoeia

Medical use
Aspirin is used in the treatment of a number of conditions, including fever, pain, rheumatic fever, and inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, pericarditis, and Kawasaki disease. Lower doses of aspirin have also been shown to reduce the risk of death from a heart attack, or the risk of stroke in people who are at high risk or who have cardiovascular disease, but not in elderly people who are otherwise healthy. There is some evidence that aspirin is effective at preventing colorectal cancer, though the mechanisms of this effect are unclear. In the United States, the selective initiation of low-dose aspirin, based on an individualised assessment, has been deemed reasonable for the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease in people aged between 40 and 59 who have a 10% or greater risk of developing cardiovascular disease over the next 10 years and are not at an increased risk of bleeding. Pain
Aspirin is an effective analgesic for acute pain, although it is generally considered inferior to ibuprofen because aspirin is more likely to cause gastrointestinal bleeding. Aspirin is generally ineffective for those pains caused by muscle cramps, bloating, gastric distension, or acute skin irritation. As with other NSAIDs, combinations of aspirin and caffeine provide slightly greater pain relief than aspirin alone. Effervescent formulations of aspirin relieve pain faster than aspirin in tablets, which makes them useful for the treatment of migraines.
In gardening
There are a many anecdotal reportings that aspirin can improve plants growth and resistance though most research involved salicylic acid instead of aspirin. Veterinary medicine
Aspirin is sometimes used in veterinary medicine as an anticoagulant or to relieve pain associated with musculoskeletal inflammation or osteoarthritis. Aspirin should only be given to animals under the direct supervision of a veterinarian, as adverse effects—including gastrointestinal issues—are common. An aspirin overdose in any species may result in salicylate poisoning, characterized by hemorrhaging, seizures, coma, and even death.Dogs are better able to tolerate aspirin than cats are. Cats metabolize aspirin slowly because they lack the glucuronide conjugates that aid in the excretion of aspirin, making it potentially toxic if dosing is not spaced out properly. No clinical signs of toxicosis occurred when cats were given 25 mg/kg of aspirin every 48 hours for 4 weeks, but the recommended dose for relief of pain and fever and for treating blood clotting diseases in cats is 10 mg/kg every 48 hours to allow for metabolization. References
Further reading
McTavish, Jan R. (Fall 1987). "Whats in a name? Aspirin and the American Medical Association". Bulletin of the History of Medicine. 61.3: 343–366. JSTOR 44442097. On loss of patent in the US in 1917. External links

"Aspirin". Drug Information Portal. U.S. National Library of Medicine. Ling G (2005). "Aspirin". How Products Are Made. Vol. 1. Thomson Gale.