ASPREE study aims to assess health benefits of aspirin

In an effort to extend the length of a disability-free life for older adults, researchers from Rush University Medical Center are partnering with colleagues from across the U.S. and Australia in the largest international trial ever sponsored by the National Institute on Aging.

The Aspirin in Reducing Events in the Elderly (ASPREE) study aims to assess whether aspirin can not only prolong life, but a life free of physical disability and/or dementia for healthy older people.

According to Dr. Raj Shah, assistant professor of family medicine at the Rush Alzheimer's Disease Center and an ASPREE investigator, "Aspirin is one of the most commonly used medicines in the world. Whether the benefits of taking aspirin to maintain a life free of disability in an older person outweigh the risk of bleeding is a critically important health question to answer."

While it is known that aspirin prevents heart attacks and strokes in people with established heart disease—benefits which clearly outweigh any risks associated with aspirin, such as bleeding—the role of aspirin in people without a history of cardiovascular disease is less certain.

"In the U.S., Australia and elsewhere, people are living longer so identifying treatments to prolong life free of physical disability and memory problems is increasingly important," explains ASPREE investigator Dr. Anne Murray, epidemiologist and geriatrician, and associate professor of medicine and geriatrics at the University of Minnesota. "Aspirin is a potentially useful drug as it is cheap and widely available."

To date, very little information is available about the overall effects of aspirin in older adults, because most trials focus on middle-aged people. The ASPREE study, for the first time, will determine whether the potential benefits of low-dose aspirin outweigh the risks specifically for people age 70 and over.

"Because of its proven effectiveness in preventing second events, many doctors have also prescribed aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes in otherwise healthy people," explains Professor John McNeil, Head of the Monash School of Public Health and Preventative Medicine in Australia, and also a principal investigator for ASPREE.

"However, in the last couple of years, serious doubts have been raised about the evidence supporting this practice, and as a result, editorials in major medical journals have called for this question to be settled."

The ASPREE study will enroll 6,500 healthy individuals age 70 and over in the U.S. and another 12,500 in Australia. Approximately 800 of those participants will come from the Chicago metropolitan area. All eligible participants will be randomly assigned to take either a low dose aspirin or a placebo daily for about five years.

Participants will receive initial measurements on specific health markers, as well as functional and cognitive ability, and changes in these will be monitored throughout the study.

"The results from the ASPREE study will help healthy older persons work with their doctors to make more informed decisions about whether aspirin should be used to increase life without disability," states Dr. Shah.