High C-reactive protein levels....

[Sarara]

Hello! My name is Sara, and I'll give you a little background on me before I ask my question. I am 23 years old, I have hypothyroidism, and I am moderately overweight. I was diagnosed with high cholesterol about 2 years ago (I forget what it was at the highest....around 250 or something scary like that, I think). I spent a year on Lescol without much result, and I just finished my first year on Zocor. In January of this year, I got my cholesterol tested and the Dr. said it was still fairly high, so I really decided to get serious about making my health a priority, and I started exercising regularly. In May I joined Weight Watchers and I have lost 26 pounds and I'm still going. I just got my cholesterol tested again, and it is now 167.....still a bit too high, but much better than before! I was feeling very encouraged, but then my Dr. said that they had also tested my C-reactive protein level, and it was 27....much, much too high. Oh, and I don't have diabetes or blood sugar problems, I don't smoke, I drink, but not very often, and I almost never actually get drunk.

I am going in today to get a second blood test just to be sure, but I have a couple of questions. First of all, I read that C-reactive protein levels over 10 are probably due to a virus or arthritis or some other inflamation in the body. I had a sore throat the day I went in for my blood test, do you think that could have caused my level to be so high? Also, I thought C-reactive protein was pretty much proportional to your cholesterol level (i.e. things that lower your cholesterol will also lower your c-reactive protein levels) so how can my cholesterol have dropped so rapidly and my c-reactive protein still be so high? How accurate of an indicator of heart disease is the C-reactive protein test? Is it like the breast cancer gene, where if they find it they practically KNOW you're going to get it, or should it be considered a warning and you can change your outcome if you're careful? What do you do to lower the levels?

I only ever see my doctor face to face once a year unless I get sick, and I always forget all the questions I want to ask her when I get her on the phone, so I'm always left with a bunch of questions, so hopefully you guys can help!

Thanks!


-Sara

[CobaltBlue]

Sara:

True, hs-CRP that is extremely elevated is normally due to the factors you mentioned. The hs-CRP in itself is just one of the risk factors that appears elevated in individuals with CAD. Doesn't mean that it is a sure-fire thing that hs-CRP will lead to CAD, nor does it mean that all of us with CAD (or CHD already in my case) will have elevated hs-CRP.

You mentioned the correlation of cholesterol to hs-CRP in your post. Actually, I have seen the linkage of hs-CRP to body fat moreso than to cholesterol levels. On another note, there might be some correlation between body fat and cholesterol level also, but again, this is not applicable in all cases.

One treatment for elevated hs-CRP that you could try is to take an aspirin daily. This will help, as will a reduction in weight.

[zip2play]

Sara,

I think of the hs-CRP as a measure of inflammation going on in the arteries. This inflammation can spur on arterial scarring which seems to be tied with the beginning of new plaque formation.
I know that homocysteine is extemely irritating to a
arterial walls, as is ferritin and god-knows-what else. For the homocysteine (did you have it measured?) a milligram of folic acid daily is a wise choice.

Whatever the effects of a lower weight directly on the arteries it's CERTAINLY a valuable aid to a good lipid profile.

I share Ubernier's view that the CR-P/heart disese connection is not a certain thing, but rather a rather large risk factor.

First order of business is a retest in a month or two. Perhaps an infection has passed or the lab simply screwed up.

Of course, an aspirin a day keeps the apples away!

[janscrub]

the latest study in the NEJM shows there is only a moderate correlation between hs-CRP and CHD. visceral adipose tissue is a source of cytokines which induce liver production of CRP. the link between a raised CRP and CHD is the destablisation of the fibrous cap of atheromatous plaques. Statins act to reduce CHD at least in part by their anti-inflammatory action

[mercedez]

Hi,
You are talking over my head with all the abreviations but I guess in time I'll start to know. I have coronary artery disease and a bit of high blood pressure and high cholesterol with bad ratio of hdl to ldl . I also have been diagnosed with Essential Thrombocytosis, which is too many platelets for an unexplainable reason. It can cause blood clots and or bleeding occurances or both. I haven't had that happen
and hope I don't but it isn't a good combination of things to have, the ET and Heart Disease. Anyway, I feel good a lot of the time and wouldn't know I was a time bomb if they didn't tell me. I justwanted to say Hi and maybe find sympatico souls out there.
Mercedez