Known brand names include Bayer Aspirin, Ecotrin, St. Joseph Aspirin, Bufferin, Durlaza, and Vazalore.
An over-the-counter NSAID that relieves pain and fever. Taken regularly at low doses under a doctor's direction, it helps prevent heart attacks and strokes by keeping platelets from clumping. It can cause stomach bleeding, and children and teens with flu or chickenpox should not take it.
First-line. Lowers the risk of death during or after a heart attack and helps prevent another.
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Labeled use. Headache, muscle pain, toothache, menstrual pain, and minor arthritis pain.
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Low-dose aspirin is the standard antiplatelet for secondary prevention after MI, ischemic stroke, or with established coronary or peripheral artery disease, and it is given right away in suspected ACS. It is paired with a P2Y12 inhibitor such as clopidogrel after stenting. For pain and fever, acetaminophen or ibuprofen is usually preferred because of aspirin's bleeding risk and Reye's syndrome in young people. Routine primary prevention is no longer advised for most adults.
A salicylate NSAID. It irreversibly inhibits platelet cyclooxygenase, blocking thromboxane A2, a strong trigger of platelet aggregation and vasoconstriction, for the life of the platelet. Blocking cyclooxygenase also reduces the prostaglandins that drive fever, pain, and swelling. The liver and gut wall partly convert it to salicylic acid.
The labels do not describe a narrow therapeutic index or direct dosing by measured blood levels of the drug.
Sources: [1]
Doses come from the FDA label. Study tool, not for clinical decisions.
No labeled dose. People with kidney disease should ask a doctor before use.
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No labeled dose. People with liver cirrhosis should ask a doctor before use.
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Avoid in the last 3 months of pregnancy unless a doctor directs it, because it can harm the unborn child or complicate delivery. Doses above 81 mg are avoided from around 20 weeks unless a doctor directs; low-dose 81 mg aspirin may be used in pregnancy when prescribed.
Children under 12 should see a doctor before use. Children and teenagers who have or are recovering from chickenpox or flu-like symptoms should not use it because of Reye's syndrome.