Baseline characteristics of the total study population and according to predicted 15-year ARR of major cardiovascular events, colorectal cancer, non-colorectal cancer, and major gastrointestinal bleeding with aspirin treatment
| Total study population (n=27 939) | <0% predicted ARR (n=18 524) | ≥0% and <1% predicted ARR (n=8943) | ≥1% predicted ARR (n=472) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years) | 54.7±7 | 52.3±5 | 59.0±7 | 64.9±7 |
| Age >65 years | 2968 (11) | 582 (3) | 2130 (24) | 256 (54) |
| Caucasian ethnicity | 26 401 (95) | 17 664 (95) | 8526 (95) | 441 (93) |
| Current smoking | 3252 (12) | 818 (4) | 2220 (25) | 217 (46) |
| Past smoking | 10 239 (37) | 7399 (40) | 2750 (31) | 98 (21) |
| Never smoking | 14 424 (52) | 10 307 (56) | 3973 (44) | 157 (33) |
| Alcohol use (≥1 drink/week) | 11 327 (41) | 8012 (43) | 3184 (36) | 133 (28) |
| Peri- or postmenopausal | 20 210 (72) | 11 609 (63) | 8173 (91) | 465 (99) |
| Hormone replacement therapy use | 14 353 (51) | 9336 (50) | 4819 (54) | 219 (46) |
| Body mass index (kg/m2) | 25.9±5.0 | 25.4±4.7 | 26.9±4.9 | 28.1±5.2 |
| High density lipoprotein (mg/dL) | 53.7±15.0 | 56.5±14.4 | 48.3±13.1 | 41.8±11.4 |
| Total cholesterol (mg/dL) | 211.8±41.8 | 204.5±37.9 | 225.1±40.8 | 234.3±40.4 |
| High sensitivity C-reactive protein (mg/L) | 2.0 [0.8–4.4] | 1.5 [0.6–3.5] | 3.1 [1.5–5.8] | 5.3 [2.7–8.6] |
| Systolic blood pressure (mm Hg) | 124±14 | 118±10 | 134±13 | 148±14 |
| Blood pressure lowering medication use | 3739 (13) | 812 (4) | 2640 (30) | 292 (62) |
| Lipid lowering medication use | 893 (3) | 319 (2) | 516 (6) | 58 (12) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 685 (2) | 35 (0) | 425 (5) | 227 (48) |
| Family history of premature CHD | 3959 (14) | 2177 (12) | 1753 (20) | 93 (20) |
| Family history of cancer* | 4966 (18) | 3205 (17) | 1701 (19) | 101 (21) |
| History of dyspepsia | 2575 (9) | 1836 (10) | 703 (8) | 36 (8) |
| Randomised to aspirin use | 13 976 (50) | 9239 (50) | 4498 (50) | 239 (51) |
| 15-year predicted risk (%) of: | ||||
| Major cardiovascular events | 1.78 [0.96–3.70] | 1.17 [0.77–1.77] | 4.95 [3.45–7.58] | 26.91 [22.11–33.59] |
| Colorectal cancer | 0.81 [0.50–1.28] | 0.64 [0.43–0.96] | 1.27 [0.84–1.88] | 1.85 [1.27–2.55] |
| Non-colorectal cancer | 9.72 [8.29–11.84] | 9.09 [7.94–10.63] | 11.50 [9.51–14.05] | 14.51 [12.09–16.87] |
| Major gastrointestinal bleeding | 1.01 [0.75–1.51] | 0.85 [0.68–1.14] | 1.53 [1.10–2.18] | 2.91 [2.22–3.67] |
Data are presented as mean ±SD, median [IQ] or n (%).
A weight of 0.25 was applied for major gastrointestinal bleeding when calculating the predicted total ARR.
*History of breast, colorectal or ovarian cancer in a parent or sibling. Data in first column represent data before imputation of missing values, whereas data in the other columns are based on imputed data.
ARR, absolute risk reduction; CHD, coronary heart disease.