Drug & supplement interaction

Coffee + Aspirin, Dipyridamole

Aspirin, Dipyridamole brand names: Aggrenox, Asasantin Retard.

Moderate Interaction
The bottom line Moderate

Aspirin, Dipyridamole falls into 2 drug categories that Coffee can interact with; the most serious is rated moderate. Theoretically, coffee may increase the risk of bleeding if used with anticoagulant or antiplatelet drugs.

Read the full interaction report
SeverityModerate
LikelihoodUnlikely
Interactions2
EvidenceD
What do Severity, Likelihood & Evidence mean?
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Interaction report

Coffee and Aspirin, Dipyridamole

These two interact in 2 distinct ways. Each one is explained separately below.

Why Are There 2 Interactions?

Coffee interacts with whole categories of medication. Aspirin, Dipyridamole falls into 2 of those categories, so it can interact with Coffee in 2 different ways. We’ve listed each one below — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them (Moderate).

Moderate

ANTICOAGULANT/ANTIPLATELET DRUGS

1 of 2

Why this applies to Aspirin, Dipyridamole

Aspirin, Dipyridamole falls under ANTICOAGULANT/ANTIPLATELET DRUGS — the group Coffee interacts with.

Theoretically, coffee may increase the risk of bleeding if used with anticoagulant or antiplatelet drugs.
Coffee contains caffeine. Caffeine is reported to have antiplatelet activity. Theoretically, the caffeine in coffee might increase the risk of bleeding when used concomitantly with these agents. However, this interaction has not been reported in humans. There is some evidence that caffeinated coffee might increase the fibrinolytic activity in blood.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Unlikely Evidence D

Interaction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans..

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's the quick picture with your Aggrenox (that combo of aspirin and dipyridamole). Both of those ingredients already work to keep your platelets from sticking together, which lowers your clotting and helps prevent strokes. The thought here is that the caffeine in coffee may have a mild blood-thinning, anti-platelet effect of its own, so in theory it could nudge your bleeding risk up a little when added on top.

I want to be honest though: this is theoretical. It comes from lab and test-tube findings, not real patients, and it's rated unlikely to actually cause trouble. Your normal cup or two of coffee almost certainly won't be the problem. Just keep an eye out for easy bruising, nosebleeds, or bleeding gums, and check with your pharmacist or doctor if anything seems off.

References
  1. Ali M, Afzal M. A potent inhibitor of thrombin stimulated platelet thromboxane formation from unprocessed tea. Prostaglandins Leukot Med 1987;27:9-13. PubMed
  2. Ardlie NG, Glew G, Schultz BG, Schwartz CJ. Inhibition and reversal of platelet aggregation by methyl xanthines. Thromb Diath Haemorrh 1967;18:670-3. DOI
  3. Samarrae WA, Truswell AS. Short-term effect of coffee on blood fibrinolytic activity in healthy adults. Atherosclerosis 1977;26:255-60. PubMed
Moderate

DIPYRIDAMOLE (Persantine)

2 of 2
Theoretically, coffee might decrease the vasodilatory effects of dipyridamole and interfere with its use prior to stress testing.
Coffee contains caffeine. Caffeine is a methylxyanthine that may inhibit dipyridamole-induced vasodilation. It is recommended that methylxanthines such as caffeine, as well as methylxanthine-containing products such as coffee, be stopped 24 hours prior to pharmacological stress tests. Methylxanthines appear more likely to interfere with dipyridamole (Persantine) than adenosine-induced stress testing.
Severity Moderate Likelihood Probable Evidence B

Interaction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports..

Dr. Brian Staiger, PharmD, BCPS
Dr. Brian Staiger explains PharmD, Clinical Pharmacist

Here's the thing to know about your Aggrenox (which combines aspirin and dipyridamole): the dipyridamole part works partly by widening your blood vessels. Caffeine in coffee can blunt that vessel-widening effect because they push against each other in the body. For day-to-day use of Aggrenox as a blood thinner, a cup of coffee isn't likely to cause a big problem, and the evidence here is fairly limited.

Where it really matters is if you're scheduled for a pharmacological stress test that uses dipyridamole. Coffee and other caffeine sources can interfere with the test and throw off the results. That's why doctors usually ask you to skip caffeine for about 24 hours beforehand. If you're unsure how this applies to you, your pharmacist or cardiologist can give you the green light.

References
  1. Underwood DA. Which medications should be held before a pharmacologic or exercise stress test? Cleve Clin J Med 2002;69:449-50. PubMed
  2. Aqel RA, Zoghbi GJ, Trimm JR, et al. Effect of caffeine administered intravenously on intracoronary-administered adenosine-induced coronary hemodynamics in patients with coronary artery disease. Am J Cardiol 2004;93:343-6. PubMed
  3. Zheng XM, Williams RC. Serum caffeine levels after 24-hour abstention: clinical implications on dipyridamole (201)Tl myocardial perfusion imaging. J Nucl Med Technol 2002;30:123-7.
  4. Smits P, Straatman C, Pijpers E, Thien T. Dose-dependent inhibition of the hemodynamic response to dipyridamole by caffeine. Clin Pharmacol Ther 1991;50:529-37. PubMed
  5. Banko, L. T., Haq, S. A., Rainaldi, D. A., Klem, I., Siegler, J., Fogel, J., Sacchi, T. J., and Heitner, J. F. Incidence of caffeine in serum of patients undergoing dipyridamole myocardial perfusion stress test by an intensive versus routine caffeine his
  6. Smits, P., Corstens, F. H., Aengevaeren, W. R., Wackers, F. J., and Thien, T. False-negative dipyridamole-thallium-201 myocardial imaging after caffeine infusion. J Nucl.Med. 1991;32(8):1538-1541. DOI

What These Ratings Mean

Every interaction above is graded three ways — here’s the key to each label.

Severity how clinically significant the interaction is
Major

Clinically significant. Avoid the combination, or use only under close professional supervision.

Moderate

Usually worth avoiding or managing — may need monitoring, a dose change, or timing apart.

Minor

Generally not serious. Be aware of it and mention it to your pharmacist.

Likelihood how strong the evidence is that the interaction actually happens in people
  • LikelyWell-controlled human studies have demonstrated the likely existence of this interaction.
  • ProbableInteraction has not been documented in well-controlled studies, however, the interaction has been demonstrated in some small human studies or in controlled animal studies in conjunction with multiple case reports.
  • PossibleInteraction has been documented in animal or in lab research, or the interaction has been documented in humans but is limited to case reports or conflicting clinical research exists.
  • UnlikelyInteraction has been demonstrated in animal or in lab research but has been shown not to occur in humans.
Evidence the quality of the studies behind the rating (graded A–D)
  • AHigh-quality meta-analysis (quantitative systematic review).
  • BCase-control study.
  • CConsensus.
  • DAnecdotal evidence.

These ratings are for information only. Never start, stop, or otherwise change your therapy before speaking with your provider.

Keep it in perspective

Coffee Also Interacts With Other Medications

Coffee has 8 major, 466 moderate, 116 minor known drug interactions in our database — the Aspirin, Dipyridamole one above is among them. If you take anything else, check it against the full list below.

Taking anything else?

Check Another of Your Medications Against Coffee

Covers the 2,830 medications we’ve checked against Coffee. Pick one to open its full report.

Everything else you take

See Every Supplement That Interacts With Aspirin, Dipyridamole

This page covers Coffee only. If you take other supplements — a multivitamin, a sleep aid, something for joints — the Aspirin, Dipyridamole page lists 243 supplements it has a documented interaction with, worst first, each one explained.

The most serious there right now: Activated Charcoal (major), Adenosine (major), Asarabacca (major), Beer (major) and Danshen (major).

By severity: 8 major · 206 moderate · 29 minor.

From our pharmacist’s overview on the Aspirin, Dipyridamole page

“Aspirin with dipyridamole (Aggrenox) keeps platelets from clumping to prevent a second stroke, so it should be no surprise that the great bulk of this page is about bleeding. Most listed supplements can thin the blood further, and the risk reaches into ordinary life: beer and wine both carry major ratings because alcohol alongside aspi…”

Reviewed by 2 · Jul 18, 2026

Open the Aspirin, Dipyridamole interaction page

One more smart check

Taking Coffee as Part of a Dietary Supplement Product? Check It for Interactions

We hold 716 real supplement products containing Coffee, each one broken down to its full ingredient list — and combination products often carry several ingredients besides Coffee. Your product may carry other ingredients that interact with Aspirin, Dipyridamole too, on top of Coffee — and those would not show on this page. Find your product and we’ll check every ingredient on its label:

How much people look this up

Where Coffee and Aspirin, Dipyridamole Sit Against Everything Else

Out of every supplement and medication people look up on HelloPharmacist, here is where these two land this week — and which way each has been moving.

Supplement Coffee
Top 5%

#70 of 1,452 supplements looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today
Medication Aspirin, Dipyridamole
Steady interest

#1,572 of 2,830 medications looked up here in the last 7 days

29 days ago today

Position among everything looked up on this site, not a measure of how commonly either one is used or how important it is. A supplement can climb this list because of a news story. It counts every request to the page, automated ones included, and nothing here identifies anyone.

Supplement

About Coffee

What is Coffee?

  • Alertness and reducing fatigue
  • Mental focus and concentration
  • Athletic performance
  • Headache relief
  • Weight management

Coffee is a widely consumed beverage made from roasted coffee beans, valued mainly for its caffeine, which boosts alertness and energy. For most healthy adults, moderate coffee intake is generally safe and may have some health benefits, but too much can cause jitteriness, poor sleep, and a faster heartbeat. People who are pregnant, breastfeeding, or sensitive to caffeine should limit their intake and check with a doctor or pharmacist.

Read the full Coffee monograph & all interactions
Keep checking

Other Drugs & Coffee

Browse every other medication we’ve checked against Coffee — both the ones with a known interaction and the ones without. Select any drug for the full detail.

8Major
466Moderate
116Minor
2,239No known interaction
Major

8 interactions

Moderate

466 interactions

Showing 60 of 466 moderate interactions — see all 466 on the Coffee page.

Minor

116 interactions

Showing 60 of 116 minor interactions — see all 116 on the Coffee page.

No interaction 2,239 drugs checked — show the list
Sources

Sources & How We Checked

Interaction details are evidence-graded and sourced from the Natural Medicines database. The medication overview comes from MedlinePlus.

Content is written and reviewed by licensed HelloPharmacist pharmacists. See our data sources and editorial standards for how this information is built and checked.

Parts of this content are provided by the Therapeutic Research Center, LLC.

DISCLAIMER: Currently this does not check for drug-drug interactions. This is not an all-inclusive comprehensive list of potential interactions and is for informational purposes only. Not all interactions are known or well-reported in the scientific literature, and new interactions are continually being reported. Input is needed from a qualified healthcare provider including a pharmacist before starting any therapy. Application of clinical judgment is necessary.

© 2021 Therapeutic Research Center, LLC

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Pharmacist Counseling Corner

Taking Coffee and Aspirin, Dipyridamole Together: Common Questions

Can you take Coffee with Aspirin, Dipyridamole?
There is a moderate interaction, so it may be acceptable with monitoring or timing changes — but check with your pharmacist first. Read the full details on this page and confirm with your pharmacist before combining them.
Why are there 2 interactions listed for Coffee and Aspirin, Dipyridamole?
Aspirin, Dipyridamole belongs to more than one drug category, and Coffee interacts with each of those categories a little differently. We list every one so nothing is missed — your overall risk is driven by the most serious of them.
How serious is the Coffee and Aspirin, Dipyridamole interaction?
We rate it Moderate. This combination may require monitoring, a dose adjustment, or separating the times you take each one. Consult your pharmacist before using them together.

Written and reviewed by the HelloPharmacist editorial staff. Our editorial policy

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