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. 2025 Jun 18;3(1):27.
doi: 10.1038/s44324-025-00072-3.

Aspirin reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes associated with COVID-19

Valentina Trimarco #  1 , Raffaele Izzo #  2 , Daniela Pacella #  3 , Maria Virginia Manzi  2 , Stanislovas S Jankauskas  4 , Paola Gallo  2 , Francesco Rozza  2 , Giuseppe Giugliano  2 , Alessandra Spinelli  2 , Giovanni Esposito  2 , Roberto Piccinocchi  5 , Gaetano Piccinocchi  6 , Carmine Morisco  2   7   8 , Maria Lembo  2 , Gaetano Santulli  9   10   11   12 , Bruno Trimarco  2   7   8
Affiliations

Aspirin reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes associated with COVID-19

Valentina Trimarco et al. NPJ Metab Health Dis. .

Abstract

This study aimed to determine whether daily low-dose aspirin reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes (T2D) associated with COVID-19. A longitudinal cohort of 200,000 adults followed from 2018 to 2022 was analyzed, comparing T2D incidence between aspirin users and non-users. Propensity score matching was used to balance the groups. The incidence of T2D was substantially lower in the aspirin group, with Cox regression showing a 52% risk reduction. Kaplan-Meier analysis confirmed a significant divergence in cumulative T2D risk after two years. This protective effect was observed both before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, with a stronger association during the pandemic period. These findings indicate that daily low-dose aspirin significantly reduces the risk of COVID-19-associated new-onset T2D, highlighting the role of inflammation in the pathogenesis of T2D triggered or unmasked by COVID-19.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1. Kaplan–Meier curves showing T2D outcome in the whole cohort.
The vertical blue line indicates the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2. Kaplan–Meier curves indicating the cumulative risk of T2D before and during the pandemic.
T2D outcome before (A) and during (B) the COVID-19 pandemic; the vertical blue line indicates the start of the pandemic.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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