<p>After more than a century, aspirin remains one of the most popular drugs in the world. Each year, 50,000 million tablets are taken worldwide and an average Briton takes 70 tablets per year. As well as being a mild analgesic, aspirin has anti-pyretic, anti-inflammatory and anti-platelet properties. Currently, the most popular use of aspirin is for the prevention of cardiovascular or cerebrovas-cular disease, based on its inhibition of platelet aggregation.</p>