According to two recent randomized studies. A Japanese study published in the November 12, 2008, issue of JAMA enrolled 2,539 patients without a history of atherosclerotic disease and gave half of them aspirin, either 81 mg or 100 mg daily, and the other half no aspirin (although nine patients in the "no aspirin" group needed and received aspirin or antiplatelet medication) for a median of 4.37 years. Atherosclerotic events occurred in 5.4% of those taking aspirin, compared with 6.7% of those not taking aspirin. A Scottish study published in the October 16, 2008, BMJ (British Medical Journal) gave 1,276 patients 100 mg of aspirin plus an antioxidant capsule, aspirin plus placebo, antioxidant plus placebo, or placebo plus placebo, for a median of 6.7 years. Among the 638 patients in the two aspirin groups, 116 had a coronary incident (as did 117 in the two nonaspirin groups), including 43 deaths (and 35 deaths in the two nonaspirin groups). In both studies, the researchers concluded that the differences between aspirin takers and nonaspirin takers weren't significant.