Background: By inhibiting prostaglandin synthesis, aspirin can interfere with both arterial functional and angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor (ACEI) properties and be deleterious in chronic heart failure (CHF).
Aim: Our aim was to prospectively evaluate the effect of aspirin on arterial functional properties in CHF patients treated with ACEIs.
Methods and results: Over three consecutive treatment periods of 7 days, 18 patients received placebo, followed by aspirin 100 mg/day, and then aspirin 325 mg/day. Single blind prospective assessment of reflected wave and time reflection by radial applanation tonometry; pulse wave velocity; blood pressure; thromboxane B2 (TxB2) and prostaglandins in plasma and urine was performed. Aspirin 325 mg/day induced a significant increase in augmentation index of reflected wave (P<0.0001 and P=0.0013 vs. placebo and aspirin 100 mg, respectively) and a significant decrease in reflected wave traveling times (P=0.0007 vs. placebo). Aspirin 100 mg/day produced a similar, though non-significant, trend in these parameters compared with placebo. Both aspirin treatments produced a statistically significant decrease in serum TxB2 (P<0.0001) but did not have an effect on the metabolite of prostaglandin I2 (P=0.136).
Conclusion: This study demonstrates the existence of a dose-mediated deleterious effect of aspirin upon arterial functional properties in CHF patients treated with ACEI.