| Message: | Aspirin, also known as acetylsalicylic acid (ASA), is a medication used to treat pain, fever, and inflammation. Specific inflammatory conditions in which it is used include Kawasaki disease, pericarditis, and rheumatic fever. Aspirin given shortly after a heart attack decreases the risk of death.
Aspirin is also used long-term to help prevent heart attacks, strokes, and blood clots in people at high risk. Aspirin may also decrease the risk of certain types of cancer, particularly colorectal cancer. For pain or fever, effects typically begin within 30 minutes.
Common side effects include an upset stomach. More significant side effects include stomach ulcers, stomach bleeding, and worsening asthma. Bleeding risk is greater among those who are older, drink alcohol, take other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), or are on blood thinners.
Aspirin is not recommended in the last part of pregnancy. It is not generally recommended in children with infections because of the risk of Reye's syndrome. High doses may result in ringing in the ears. Aspirin works similar to other NSAIDs but also irreversibly blocks the normal functioning of platelets.
Aspirin, in the form of leaves from the willow tree, has been used for its health effects for at least 2,400 years. The first study of an extract from the bark for fever was completed in 1763 by Edward Stone. Felix Hoffmann, a chemist at Bayer, has been credited with first chemically making aspirin in 1897.
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