Updated risk calculator recommends less low-dose aspirin use
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- Reviewed by Robert H. Shmerling, MD, Senior Faculty Editor, Harvard Health Publishing; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing
Far fewer people are considered candidates for low-dose aspirin to prevent heart disease with the updated PREVENT risk calculator compared with an older version, a new analysis suggests.
In 2023, the American Heart Association unveiled the PREVENT calculator to replace an older calculator used to estimate a person’s risk of cardiovascular disease (including heart attack and stroke) over a 10-year period. The updated tool considers additional factors such as body mass index and kidney function. Based on a sample of 3,158 middle-aged adults without heart disease, researchers found that with the PREVENT calculator, only about 1% would qualify for preventive aspirin use, compared to 8% with the older calculator. Because daily aspirin can cause potentially dangerous bleeding, it’s only recommended for people at high risk (defined as a 10% likelihood over 10 years) for a cardiovascular-related problem. For now, the risk thresholds regarding aspirin advice require additional study, say the authors, whose report was published online Sept. 29, 2025, by JAMA Internal Medicine.
Of note: most adults in the sample who reported taking low-dose aspirin didn’t meet criteria for taking aspirin by either calculator. Always check with your doctor before taking daily low-dose aspirin, especially if you do not have heart disease.
Image: © Tetra Images/Getty Images
About the Author
Julie Corliss, Executive Editor, Harvard Heart Letter
About the Reviewer
Robert H. Shmerling, MD, Senior Faculty Editor, Harvard Health Publishing; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing
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