UI researchers investigate aspirin’s role in preventing intracranial aneurysm rupture

Aspirin may help prevent intracranial aneurysm rupture by decreasing the rate of aneurysm growth, according to a study published in the Journal of Neurosurgery by a team that includes nine University of Iowa researchers.

Using a database search, the team identified 146 patients with multiple intracranial saccular aneurysms of 5 mm or less in diameter that had been observed for at least five years. In those patients, the researchers found an association between aspirin use and a decreased rate of aneurysm growth. Growth increases the risk of aneurysm rupture.

The data for the study came from a group of patients who had undergone surgical or endovascular treatment by the study’s senior author, UI neurosurgeon David M. Hasan, MD.

“This study is very promising, as it outlines for the first time the potential therapeutic effect of aspirin in decreasing aneurysm growth,” Hasan says. “If proven in a larger study, this could offer the first, cheap, effective over-the-counter therapeutic agent that could halt aneurysm growth and prevent rupture. Many people around the world could benefit from this.”

Other UI researchers on the team included Mario Zanaty, MD; Jorge A. Roa, MD; Lauren Allan, MD; Sami Al Kasab, MD; Kaustubh Limaye, MD; Edgar A. Samaniego, MD; Pascal Jabbour, MD; and James C. Torner. The team collaborated with researchers at Thomas Jefferson University, the University of Tokyo, and Hiroshima University.