An international team of researchers from 13 countries has found that combination therapy with aspirin, statins (cholesterol-lowering drugs) and two drugs to correct blood pressure help reduce the risk of death from cardiovascular disease. Their work is published in The Lancet (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(21)01827-4/fulltext).
The scientists analyzed data from three clinical studies on 18 thousand patients from 26 countries who had no previous cardiovascular disease. They compared two fixed dose combination drugs (one with aspirin and the other without). It was found that taking the former reduced the risk of heart attack by 53 percent, the risk of stroke by 51 percent, and the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by 49 percent. At the same time, as scientists note, the combination worked successfully both with a separate intake of each component, and as a polypill.
“The effect of the drug is the same at different levels of blood pressure and cholesterol, regardless of the presence of diabetes. However, the greatest effect can be achieved in older people, ”- said the first author of the study, Associate Professor at McMaster University (Canada) Philip Joseph.
Scientists estimate that large-scale use of the drug can help avoid strokes, heart attacks and deaths from them from five to ten million people annually.