High-dose aspirin may affect fibrin network permeability in type 1 diabetes

Tehrani S. Diabetes Care. 2011;doi:10.2337/dc11-1302.

Patients with poor glycemic control who received 320 mg aspirin during a 4-week period experienced significant increases in fibrin network permeability, according to study results.

The researchers examined the effects of low- and high-dose aspirin on fibrin network formation in 48 patients with type 1 diabetes to determine whether the effect of aspirin is reduced in this population. The secondary outcome measure was to assess the possibility that the treatment effects of aspirin on fibrin network permeability interact with glycemic control.

Half of the study participants had HbA1c levels of less than 7.4%, and the other half had HbA1c levels of more than 8.4%. These patients were randomly assigned treatment with either 75 mg/day or 320 mg/day aspirin during 4 weeks in a crossover fashion, according to the results. There was a 4-week washout period between treatment periods. The researchers assessed the plasma fibrin network by determining the permeability coefficient (K_s).

No influence on fibrin network permeability was observed in participants receiving 75 mg aspirin. A significant increase in K_s was observed among patients in the 320-mg group (P=.004). In addition, compared with the 75-mg group, a significant treatment effect was observed in the 320-mg group (P=.009).

Those with poor glycemic control who were receiving high-dose aspirin experienced a significant increase in K_s (P=.02). Among patients with good glycemic control receiving 320 mg aspirin, a nonsignificant increase in K_s was observed (P=.06).

“A high dose of aspirin is required to influence fibrin network permeability in patients with type 1 diabetes,” the researchers wrote. “The observed lack of effect with low-dose aspirin may contribute to aspirin treatment failure in diabetes.”

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