Description: Aspirin is safer and no less effective than Coumadin for treating dangerously blocked brain arteries, a major new study shows. That's both good news and bad news. The good news is that many patients with blocked brain arteries may be able to avoid the expense and complications of treatment with Coumadin (also known by its generic name, warfarin). The bad news is that despite treatment, more than one in five patients suffers stroke, brain hemorrhage, or death within two years.