Role of Aspirin with Thrombolytic Therapy in Acute Myocardial Infarction

¹ The Channing Laboratory, Departments of Medicine and Preventive Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston.

Thrombolytic therapy has been shown to limit infarct size, improve ventricular function, and decrease mortality in suspected evolving myocardial infarction (MI). Aspirin therapy also decreases mortality as well as stroke and reinfarction in suspected evolving MI. The combined ability of both agents to lyse as well as to prevent clots yields a greater benefit than either alone. The use of aspirin with thrombolysis also protects against the increase in reinfarction observed when thrombolytic therapy is given alone. While ongoing research is evaluating the optimal thrombolytic agent as well as the possible role of heparin, it is already clear that the use of aspirin with thrombolytic therapy will significantly decrease reinfarction, stroke, and vascular mortality in suspected evolving MI.