4p pill cuts heart attack risk better than aspirin

Calls for blood thinner to be NHS's top choice

- BY MARTIN BAGOT Health Editor in Madrid

A NEW pill is said to work better than aspirin at cutting heart attack risks and scientists want it to be the preferred drug of treatment on the NHS.

Blood thinner clopidogrel costs less than 4p a tablet.

Millions of Brits with heart disease currently take a daily aspirin, known as an anti-platelet medication, to lower the risk of a coronary or stroke.

But clopidogrel slashes those chances by an additional 14%.

A global consortium of researchers, including from Imperial College London, concluded that it offers “superior protection”.