Felicita Andreotti, MD, PhD

The role of combination therapy with an oral anticoagulant and aspirin for patients recovering from an acute coronary syndrome is still being debated. The results of our meta-analysis showed that treatment with aspirin plus warfarin at international normalized ratio values between 2 and 3 significantly reduces the risk of major adverse events compared with aspirin alone but also increases the risk of major bleeding. For every 100 patients receiving combination therapy, approximately 3 major adverse events are prevented and 1 major hemorrhage occurs.