Aspirin users may go blind in later life

A new study has suggested that people who take a daily dose of aspirin are twice as likely to suffer blindness in later life. Researchers who tested more than 4,000 elderly people across Europe found that those who took the drug every day were twice as likely to be diagnosed with late stage age related macular degeneration as those who did not, the Telegraph reported. While not painful, the AMD sufferer can find it hard to focus directly on an object, making it hard to read, drive or watch television. While the study provided no evidence of a causal link between aspirin and the condition, experts are now examining whether a regular dose somehow exacerbates the disease. One theory that has been put forward is that AMD could be linked to heart disease and so is therefore found in aspirin users who are trying to combat their coronary condition. But lead researcher, Paulus de Jong from the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience and Academic Medical Centre said his team had analysed as 'meticulously as possible' whether cardiovascular disease might have influenced the results. He said the results still suggested aspirin users - regardless of their heart health - are at a greater risk of the of suffering late stage AMD. However he added that for those who were suffering from heart disease, the benefits of taking aspirin outweighed the risks posed to their vision.