Re: Another 7 day stay in hospital after emergency room treatm...

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 8/10/2003 3:40:34 PM Central Daylight Time,

Pagequeen1@... writes:

> was told in the ER that adding a baby aspirin a day can help, too.

> I didn't think you could take both aspirin and coumaden, but I was

> told they work on different platelets. Does any one have any more

> information on this? Does it sound reasonable to take a baby aspirin

> and coumadin?

>

Coumadin and aspirin work on entirely different components of the blood

coagulation system. Coumadin inhibits certain blood proteins required for

clotting

and aspirin affects your platelets. Coumadin levels can be checked by

prothrombin time tests and platelet status by platelet aggregation tests, but

the

latter is not often ordered by doctors unless they believe something is amiss

with your platelet funcion. Excesses of both drugs can cause bleeding, and my

cardiologist has chosen to have me on coumadin alone. I think this is something

your cardiologist should help you decide (rather than the ER docs).

Brenta