The utilization status of aspirin for the secondary prevention of ischemic stroke

BACKGROUND: The present study was aimed to investigate the usage of aspirin for the secondary prevention of ischemic stroke, evaluate the correlated factors, and analyze the reasons for not taking and irregularly taking aspirin. METHODS: The patients in this group were all stroke survivors who have formerly been diagnosed with a cerebral infarction or transient ischemic attack (TIA) in our hospital. We investigated their use of aspirin over a three-year period following their hospitalization. According to the patients' aspirin usage, they were divided into treatment and non-treatment groups. In addition, the reasons for not taking or irregularly taking aspirin were analyzed in the two groups. RESULTS: A total of 1240 patients were studied, including 367 (29.60%) in the treatment group and 873 (70.40%) cases in the non-treatment group. In addition, 201 (16.20%) cases in the treatment group had been regularly taking aspirin (50 - 325 mg of aspirin daily) for 1 to 3 years or longer. The results demonstrated that the main reasons for not taking aspirin in this study were related to patients' concerns regarding the side effects of taking aspirin (46.45%), as well as the doctors' inadequacy in informing their patients to take aspirin (38.71%). The major reasons for patients to irregularly take aspirin were that the doctors did not notify the length of aspirin usage to their patients (41.57%), and that doctors did not prescribe aspirin upon the patients' follow-up visit (26.51%). CONCLUSION: The most effective way to increase patient's compliance for aspirin consumption is to promote the guidelines for stroke treatment and to relay these advances in stroke therapy to the patient.