Many individuals who fall into the above categories are not treated with aspirin by their physicians. In particular,
individuals are not advised regarding the proven life-saving value of chewable aspirin taken immediately during an episode of chest pain presumed to be due to an impend¬ing heart attack or episode of unstable angina. Individ¬uals should be informed that chewable aspirin can save a life or prevent a heart attack, but that nitroglycerin under the tongue used in tablet or spray form does not prevent the occurrence of fatal or nonfatal myocardial infarction.
It is remarkable that after many years of research and with the expenditure of several billion dollars, only 4 of the more than 100 drugs administered by mouth to treat heart diseases cause prolongation of life. These agents are chewable aspirin, beta-blockers, ACE inhibitors, and the cholesterol-lowering drugs, statins. Thus an aspirin a day is now better than an apple a day. Two 80- to 81-mg soft chewable aspirin taken at the onset of a heart attack can prevent death or decrease the size of heart muscle damage (see Fig. 3).