WHO classifies active ingredient of Aspirin® as essential medicine
Acetylsalicylic acid, the active ingredient of Aspirin®, has been included by the World Health Organization (WHO) in its "Model list of essential medicines" in three categories. The list contains medicines that satisfy the priority health care needs of the population and are therefore an essential component of any health care system. The crucial criteria for selection were efficacy, tolerability, global availability and the affordability of the medicine. Acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) qualified in all points for three indications: pain, prevention of frequently fatal vascular occlusive events such as myocardial infarction and stroke and, for the first time, acute migraine attacks. "We are proud that the importance of Aspirin® has been confirmed by the WHO," said Dr. Umberto Filippi from Bayer and added, "The evaluation of Aspirin®'s tolerability in particular shows that this active substance is one of the best in this respect."
The 12th updated edition of this list contains a total of 325 active substances that exert a particularly high level of therapeutic benefit in infectious and chronic diseases affecting the majority of the world's population.
The "Model list of essential medicines" is available on the Internet at: http://www.who.int/medicines/organization/par/edl/eml.shtml
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