OT:Whatever happenened to .... asprin ?

Could you possibly post more bollocks?

Paracetamol (generic) is as cheap as chips. No one is making much money out of it. Aspirin is *usually* safe but can cause severe bleeding in some people. For "severe", read fatal for some.

Paracetamol does have a narrow therapeutic ratio but in normal prescribed dosage is very safe.

Tim

Look who posted it...

The iron age history chap from TV, Peter Reynolds, that did archeology tours died when he took aspirin in the absence of his normal painkiller, when in Turkey I think. I thought it was a bleed in the leg though I barely knew him.

AJH

Rubbish.

The only thing that 'thins the blood' is severe anaemia, blood loss corrected by emergency fluid and plasma infusion or over hydration.

Aspirin interferes with the bodies platelet function. Normally they react to contact with tissue after damage caused by cuts, impact or abrasion by changing shape.

When this happens the platelets become 'sticky' and clump together forming the initial barrier to blood loss. This is measured by a haematology path lab test called the bleeding time, which is normally about 2 minutes.

After the initial plug of platelets has occured the rest of the clotting sequence is initiated which ultimately causes the polymerisation of fibrin into fibrinogen and this is like the glass-fibre reinforcement to seal the wound.

Aspirin does affect platelets for up to week, which is why you should avoid taking it (and ibuprofen which it is related to) for a week prior to donating blood.

Other anticoagulants like warfarin and heparin act on other parts of the coagulation sequence, and they do not 'thin the blood' either.

Aspirin, Warfarin and Heparin do not alter the blood viscosity.

finally, someone who has a brain.

A very *tiny* proportion of the public react badly to aspirin, but the health benefits (*) massively outweigh Nulabs utterly stupid decision to limit aspirin sales to 32 per transaction.

Instead of 50p for a bottle of 100 in Boots, we now pay 45p for a pack of 16. And Sainsbury and Tesco now charge more for standard aspirin than for the dissolvable type. Strange.

In Sweden all adults carry a 300 mg dissolvable aspirin tablet to administer to someone who might be having a heart attack.

They wont ban asprin, thousands of people take small doses every day,(100mgs) for heart problems.

He had underlying medical issues then. It wasn't aspirin that killed him.

Extremely rare with low dose asprin it is aprox 1/5 of headache dose and is keeping many thousands of people alive longer. I am up for a TURP and they can cope with low dose asprin but with warfarin they have many problems with the opp.

Except both are commonly *called* 'blood thinner'.

As with all language, the word, the concept and the reality as it is, are not identical ....

A concept itself - which once grasped - is the simple solution to Theseus' ship paradox.

Only common people call anticoagulants 'blood thinners'.

Any medical or paramedical professional who describes anticoagulants as such, should be avoided.

Thinners is used by car resprayers. Does that stop the paint clotting ?.

I suspect that alcohol abuse causes far more medical problems than aspirin.

Aren't thinners also used in paint butn they don't stop the paint drying.

Very probably, but it?s not what?s under discussion.

Tim

Only by people who have been patronised with baby-talk by their doctor. This is widely considered to be improper nowadays, so hopefully the expression will die out as older users die.

Both 300mg aspirin and 75mg aspirin are available in larger quantities over the counter from pharmacies without prescription. The pharmacist will probably ask you if you intend to use them all at once.

Not usually, though it can be in some circumstances.

Oh yes - sorry, missed that one!