CRP Predicts Heart Problems Better than Cholesterol

A large landmark study has shown that a simple and inexpensive blood test for C-reactive protein (CRP) that detects inflammation is a more powerful predictor of heart problems than cholesterol screening. The study was published in the November 14, 2002, issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

The eight-year study involved 27,939 women. Of those studied who eventually suffered from heart disease, more than half had cholesterol levels considered low by current standards. When CRP evaluation was added to a cholesterol screen, the majority of these high-risk individuals were identifiable many years before their first cardiovascular event. The study confirms what researchers have suspected for years, that low-grade inflammation within the body leads to a weakening and rupture of arterial plaque and is a fundamental cause of heart attacks and strokes. CRP is a substance produced in the liver when arteries become inflamed.

"In the study, we found that individuals with high CRP but low cholesterol levels were actually at higher risk than those with high cholesterol levels but low CRP,” said Paul Ridker, M.D., lead author of the study and director of the Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH, Boston, MA, USA).

"I believe measurement of CRP should be seriously evaluated as a part of our strategy for global risk prediction,” said Sidney Smith, M.D., former president of the American Heart Association. "The impact of this study, when added to existing information, makes the story very compelling.”




Related Links:
Brigham and Womens