C-Reactive Protein, Part 1

As the war against the leading cause of death for Americans, heart disease, goes on, new tools are being developed to recognize high risk individuals.The symptoms of coronary heart disease --chest pain, shortness of breath, and an abnormal pulse --are difficult to diagnose as they vary from patient to patient. Also, these are symptoms that can point to a variety of other medical conditions.

The good news is that a variety of simple diagnostic methods may identify coronary heart disease before it becomes life threatening. Recently doctors have found that the presence of a substance called C-Reactive Protein in the blood indicates that blood vessels are inflamed. The body releases C-Reactive protein into the bloodstream when blood vessels leading to the heart are damaged.

What we know about C-Reactive Protein and Heart Disease:
Testing for this protein adds to the predictive value of screening blood samples for both total and HDL (good) cholesterol levels.

C-Reactive protein testing may improve doctors' ability to predict heart disease risk.

The higher the concentration of C-Reactive protein, the more likely the chances to have a heart attack or stroke.

The protein's level indicates the degree of inflammation occurring in the lining of the arteries.

C-Reactive protein levels predict coronary events even among otherwise low-risk patients.

Half of all heart attack victims have normal cholesterol levels and normal blood pressure levels.

C-Reactive protein is a substance found in the liver when arteries are inflamed.

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