Oral single high‐dose aspirin results in a long‐lived inhibition of anodal current‐induced vasodilatation

Acetyl salicyclic acid (aspirin) irreversibly blocks cyclo‐oxygenase (COX). This effect is short‐lived in endothelial or smooth muscle cells due to resynthesis but long‐lived in platelets devoid of synthesis ability. Aspirin blocks the anodal current‐induced vasodilatation, suggesting participation by prostaglandin (PG). We analysed the time course of the effect of aspirin as an indirect indicator of the origin of the PG possibly involved in anodal current‐induced vasodilatation. In healthy volunteers, vasodilatation, estimated from the peak cutaneous vascular conductance (CVC peak ), was recorded in the forearm during and in the 20 min following 5 min, 0.10 mA transcutaneous anodal current application, using deionized water as a vehicle. CVC peak was normalized to 44°C heat‐induced maximal vasodilatation and expressed in per cent values. Experiments were performed before and at 2 and 10 h, 3, 7, 10 and 14 days after blinded 1‐g aspirin or placebo treatment. CVC peak (mean±s.d.mean) after aspirin vs placebo was 13.6±14.5 vs 65.0±32.1 ( P <0.05) 14.7±4.2 vs 87.5±31.9 ( P <0.05), 18.1±10.2 vs 71.6±26.8 ( P <0.05), 42.5±23.4 vs 73.3±26.8 (non significant, NS), 60.2±24.3 vs 75.2±26.9 (NS), 52.1±18.5 vs 67.9±32.1 (NS) at 2 and 10 h and at days 3, 7, 10 and 14 respectively. Aspirin inhibition of anodal current‐induced vasodilatation persists long after endothelial and smooth muscle cyclo‐oxygenases are assumed to be restored. This suggests that the PG involved in this response are not endothelial‐ or smooth muscle‐derived. The underlying mechanism of this unexpected long‐lived inhibition of vasodilatation by single high dose aspirin remains to be studied.British Journal of Pharmacology (2002) 137 , 384–390. doi: 10.1038/sj.bjp.0704868