People who don't get treatment for this type of irregular heartbeat, atrial fibrillation, run a high risk of suffering a stroke. Strokes occur when a blood clot shuts off the brain's blood supply. Canadian epidemiologist Karin Humphries and colleagues studied 339 women and 560 men with atrial fibrillation. B.C. She says elderly women not taking warfarin are running the risk of suffering a deadly stroke. She and other experts say warfarin is much more effective than aspirin at preventing stroke.
Atrial fibrillation occurs when the upper chambers of the heart quiver rather than beat regularly.
The abnormal heartbeat can cause blood to pool and form a clot, which can trigger a stroke. Experts say many people don't realize they suffer from atrial fibrillation, which is often described as heart palpitations or a fluttering heart. This study was done on Canadian patients, but experts say the findings probably hold true for U.S. patients. Cynthia Tracy, a spokeswoman for the American Heart Association, says there's no reason to think U.S. doctors prescribe this drug differently. Atrial fibrillation affects more than 2 million Americans.