Low Dose Aspirin Does Not Improve Leg Ulcer Outcomes
Low dose aspirin with compression therapy for venous leg ulcers does not improve healing outcomes, according to a recent study.
The community based, double blind, randomized controlled trial included 251 adults with venous leg ulcers. For 24 weeks, 125 participants received once-daily 150 mg of oral aspirin and 126 participants received matching placebo in addition to standard compression therapy. The time to complete healing of the reference ulcer was assessed as the primary outcome. Secondary outcomes included the proportion of participants who experienced healing, changes in ulcer area, changes in health-related quality of life, and adverse events.
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Overall, the median number of days to healing of the reference ulcer was 77 among participants who received aspirin and 69 among participants who received placebo (hazard ratio 0.85). By the endpoint visit, the ulcers of 88 participants (70%) in the aspirin group and 101 participants (80%) in the placebo group had healed. The estimated changes in ulcer area were 4.1 cm2 and 4.8 cm2 among those in the aspirin group and placebo group, respectively.
Additionally, 40 adverse events occurred among 29 participants in the aspirin group and 37 adverse events occurred among 27 participants in the placebo group.
“In people with venous leg ulcers, treatment with low dose aspirin for up to 24 weeks does not speed time to complete healing, increase percentage of participants with healed ulcers, or improve change in ulcer area or health related quality of life when used as an adjuvant to compression,” the authors concluded.
—Melissa Weiss
Reference:
Jull A, Wadham A, Bullen C, Parag V, Kerse N, Waters J. Low dose aspirin as adjuvant treatment for venous leg ulceration: pragmatic, randomised, double blind, placebo controlled trial (Aspirin4VLU) [published online November 24, 2017]. BMJ. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.j5157.