Clinical Effectiveness of C-Reactive Protein as Inflammation Marker in Cardiovascular Disease

The acute phase response protein produced by hepatocytes, C-reactive protein (CRP) is a sensitive inflammatory marker associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease in healthy individuals. CRP has been shown to have prognostic value in patients with acute coronary syndromes.Elevated levels ofCRP a sensitive predictive marker of cardiovascular disease and acutemyocardial infarction.CRP is present within most atherosclerotic plaques and in events of acute myocardial infraction lesions and its binding ability to lipoproteins and its capacity for pro-inflammatory complement activation. The paper reviews the diagnostic accuracy of CRP in cardiovascular events and its use to determine inflammatory status.