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.
