Leading heart experts say the results were "somewhat surprising," and their discovery could warrant a conversation with your doctor.
Though experts had long recommended a daily dose of aspirin to prevent heart attacks and strokes, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force changed course in 2022, advising against it for the primary prevention of heart disease in adults who are 60 or older. But a new study, presented November 9 at the American Heart Association’s annual Scientific Sessions meeting, suggests aspirin could still be a helpful tool for people with a specific health condition.
For the study, researchers analyzed 10 years of health data from nearly 11,700 adults with type 2 diabetes and an elevated cardiovascular risk in the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center system, which includes more than 35 hospitals and 400 outpatient clinics. The findings—which are currently considered preliminary and have not yet been peer-reviewed—revealed that people with type 2 diabetes who regularly took aspirin were less likely to experience a heart attack, stroke, or death during the follow-up period.
“We were somewhat surprised by the magnitude of the findings,” noted study author Aleesha Kainat, MD, an internal medicine physician and clinical assistant professor of medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.
When reviewing the data from the adults with type 2 diabetes, it was noted whether the patients took low-dose aspirin frequently (labeled as more than 70% of the time), sometimes (between 30% and 70% of the time), seldom (less than 30% of the time), or not at all during the follow-up period. It was discovered that:
- 42% of aspirin users had suffered a heart attack versus 61% of non-users
- 15% of aspirin users had experienced a stroke versus 25% of non-users
- Overall mortality was 33% among aspirin users versus 51% among non-users
The benefits did not depend on blood sugar control, though those with lower blood sugar showed greater risk reduction. Additionally, though any amount of low-dose aspirin was linked to a lower likelihood of heart attack or stroke, “the greatest benefit seen among those who took low-dose aspirin most frequently.”
“We know that in recent studies aspirin hasn’t proven beneficial for primary prevention in people who don’t have established cardiovascular disease. However, Type 2 diabetes is a known risk factor for cardiovascular disease,” added Dr. Kainat. In fact, according to the American Diabetes Association, people who have been diagnosed with diabetes are twice as likely to develop heart disease or stroke than those who have not. “Diabetes and heart disease often go hand-in-hand,” their experts write.
Dr. Kainat also noted that they excluded people with a high bleeding risk and did not follow any bleeding events—an important limitation given aspirin’s known side effects. She emphasized the need for future studies to clarify how to balance aspirin’s heart benefits with its bleeding risks, and to explore its role alongside newer diabetes and heart drugs, including GLP-1s such as Ozempic and Wegovy.
Volunteer chair of the American Heart Association’s Advocacy Coordinating Committee, Amit Khera, MD, said the study “raises some good questions for further research and validation,” also emphasizing that individuals should always coordinate with their healthcare team to best determine potential treatments in light of personal health conditions and possible risk factors.
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