aspirin

[atrialfib]

Hi everyone,I would like to know the difference between aspirin and Warfrin,everybody is forever saying that aspirin is not good enough to treat AF ,it is a blood thinner,so why not,its not enough just to say ,aspirin doesnt work,I want to know why, I am wondering if its all about costs,any clues?

[baba]

nice.org.uk/guidance/cg180

[Beancounter Volunteer]

Hi atrialfib

Firstly NONE of them "thin the blood" that is an erroneous term used far too often which does not describe the actions of the drugs, whichever one you take,

Quite simply they work in entirely different ways, aspirin is an "anti-platelet" useful sometimes and not often for people with heart conditions which usually involve a build up of calcium, the calcium can (sort of) stick to the platelets in the blood and make clots, aspirin can help prevent this.

Warfarin however is an anti-coagulant, so it decreases Vitamin K in the body which is an essential part of the clotting process and this means that clots are much harder to form. When you have AF the atria is fluttering and not emptying each time it pumps there are areas of the atria where clots can form and if they break away then it's very very serious.

Two more things

Warfarin, is probably cheaper than aspirin, but not by much, and of course once on warfarin you need blood tests making it more expensive as a course of treatment.

More importantly, AF can create the very worst forms of stroke, in fact you are 5 times more likely to have the very worst stroke when you suffer from AF. This is the clot in the brain either die or end up a vegetable type of stroke.

Aspirin does absolutely nothing to prevent this type of stroke, and this is why NICE earlier this year effectively outlawed it for stroke prevention in AF.

Please note that all of the above is a simplification of how they work, you can find much more detail online.

Hope this helps, and please anti-coagulate.

Ian

[atrialfib in reply to Beancounter]

Thanks Ian,i am 59 with no other problems,had AF for 2 half years,so do i need to just yet

[Beancounter Volunteer in reply to atrialfib]

Hi atrialfib

2 answers

The official one, is go and score yourself on CHADS2VASC (google it) and if you are 0 then no anti-coag needed, 1 or above then you should be anti-coagulated.

And now my personal one, my score is zero, I am a few months older than you and have tipped over into the next decade.

I take warfarin every day, and am very happy to do so.

Be well

Ian

[jossikins in reply to Beancounter]

What a brilliantly informative answer to a question I have recently had occasion to pose, myself.

My husband is on aspirin (blocked arteries and angioplasty and I am on warfarin (AF and ablation). You have answered my question before I even had a chance to voice it. Thanks.

[CDreamer]

Hi atrialfib

Your risk of stroke is automatically about 5 times higher because you have AF than the average person without AF. Your risk increases with other factors which are calculated through something called CHADSvasc. If you go onto the main AFA website you will find a wealth of information and advisory leaflets that you can download on every aspect of AF.

Briefly, if your CHADSvasc score is 0 you may be advised that Anticoagulation is not recommended. Score 1 it would be advisory but your choice, score 2 and higher and you would almost certainly be on an anticoagulant as the risk would be considered very high. You will find that most people on this site would be taking either Wafarin or one of the new anticoagulants, again lots of info on the main AF website.

It really pays to inform yourself and the AFA have all the info on the latest information and research and they also campaign for better services etc so well worth joining.

This forum is very supportive and you will always find someone around to help and answer any queries.

Best wishes

By the way there is also a link to a questionnaire you can fill in that calculates your CHADSvasc on the AFA Amin site.

[Offcut]

nhs.uk/news/2012/05may/Page...

Been on Warfarin since 1992 would not ever go on Aspirin.