Aspirin use reduces risk of death in hospitalised COVID-19 patients

Hospitalised COVID-19 patients who were taking a daily low-dose aspirin to protect against cardiovascular disease had a significantly lower risk of complications and death compared to those who were not taking aspirin, according to a new study led by researchers at the University of Maryland School of Medicine (UMSOM).

Aspirin takers were less likely to be placed in the intensive care unit (ICU) or hooked up to a mechanical ventilator, and they were more likely to survive the infection compared to hospitalised patients who were not taking aspirin.

The study, published in the journal Anesthesia and Analgesia, provides "cautious optimism," the researchers say, for an inexpensive, accessible medication with a well-known safety profile that could help prevent severe complications.

To conduct the study, Dr Chow and his colleagues culled through the medical records of 412 COVID-19 patients, age of 55 on average, who were hospitalized over the past few months due to complications of their infection.

They were treated at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore and three other hospitals along the East Coast.

About a quarter of the patients were taking a daily low-dose aspirin (usually 81 milligrams) before they were admitted or right after admission to manage their cardiovascular disease.

The researchers found aspirin use was associated with a 44 per cent reduction in the risk of being put on a mechanical ventilator, a 43 per cent decrease in the risk of ICU admission, and -- most importantly -- a 47 per cent decrease in the risk of dying in the hospital compared to those who were not taking aspirin.

The patients in the aspirin group did not experience a significant increase in adverse events such as major bleeding while hospitalised.