C-Reactive Protein

Question: a 35 c-reactive protein count and high neutrophils togeather could mean any type of illness or disease? On Dr. Oz today he had a lady on there that had a 20.4 c-reactive protein count and he had said that he had never seen a number that high. Should I see a doctor immediately and which type of doctor should I see.

Answer: A positive test means you have inflammation in the body. This may be due to a variety of different conditions, including: * Cancer * Connective tissue disease * Heart attack * Infection * Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) * Lupus * Pneumococcal pneumonia * Rheumatoid arthritis * Rheumatic fever * Tuberculosis This list is not all inclusive. Note: Positive CRP results also occur during the last half of pregnancy or with the use of birth control pills (oral contraceptives).

Question: How can I lower my C-Reactive Protein test? Are there any nutritional, herbal or mineral methods to lower my C-Reactive Protein reading? It is a test of Cardiac risk. My total cholesterol is 154. LDL's 112. HDL's 31.Triglycerides 57. CRP is 1.39. Glucose is 89. I weigh 175 at 6'2" about 19% bodyfat.

Answer: C reactive protein is NOT a test of cardiac risk. It is a nonspecific indicator of inflammation in the body, and elevations of CRP have been associated with cardiac events. This is a fine distinction, but it leads me to the point that lowering your CRP depends upon why it is elevated in the first place. It may be due to arthritis, a connective tissue disease, infection, or a host of other sources. You need to work with the physician who ordered the test to find out why it is elevated and then treat that condition. Incidentally, treating the CRP has never been shown to reduce cardiac risk. Treating high cholesterol, blood pressure, diabetes, and stopping smoking reduces cardiac risk, and you are much, much better off working on these traditional risk factors for heart disease.

Question: Do STATIN drugs increase your c-reactive protein which is a marker for inflammation. If so, why? Do STATIN drugs increase your c-reactive protein which is a marker for inflammation. If so, why?

Answer: A bit, and marketeers for some statins try to convey (to some doctors) that they have an inherent inflammatory effect which may diminish potential atheroschlerotic and thrombotic tendencies.

Question: For any medical doctors on Yahoo.. What is the impact of C-Reactive Protein Cardiac? I was tested through a blood test. These are the results c-reactive protein, cardiac, rheumatoid arthritis factor, relative risk for future cardiovascular event. well, I am a heart patient from birth until I die. What does this mean? In layman words please?

Answer: You do not give the complete results, only, apparently, the test names and a risk statement. I will endeavour to explain the relative tests- The CRP test is sometimes used in patients with inflammatory bowel disease and some forms of arthritis and autoimmune diseases to assess how active the inflammation is and to monitor the treatment. The CRP test is also used to monitor patients after surgery or other invasive procedures to detect the presence of an infection during the recovery period. CRP tests are not specific enough to diagnose a particular disease. Rather, CRP is a general marker of infection and inflammation that alerts medical professionals that further testing and treatment may be necessary. C-reactive protein (CRP) is one of the acute phase proteins that increase during systemic inflammation. It’s been suggested that testing CRP levels in the blood may be an additional way to assess cardiovascular disease risk. A more sensitive CRP test, called a highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) assay, is available to determine heart disease risk. Rheumatoid factor is an immunoglobulin (antibody) which can bind to other antibodies. Antibodies are normal proteins found in the blood which function within the immune system. Rheumatoid factor though is not normally found in the general population (only found in about 1-2% of healthy people). The incidence of rheumatoid factor increases with age and about 20% of people over 65 years old have an elevated rheumatoid factor. A blood test is used to detect the presence of rheumatoid factor. The blood test is commonly ordered to diagnose rheumatoid arthritis. Rheumatoid factor is present in 80% of adults who have rheumatoid arthritis but there is a much lower prevalence in juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. It would appear, from your statement, that the test results have led the specialist to believe that, I quote what you write in the result , there is a “relative risk for future cardiovascular event.” You would be advised to consult the relative specialists, or your doctor, for an explanation of these findings and the treatment and lifestyle that you would be expected to pursue in the future. I add a link for both these tests http://www.webmd.com/ a-to-z-guides/ C-Reactive-Protein-CRP http://www.labtestsonline.org/ understanding/analytes/ rheumatoid/test.html Hope this helps matador 89

Question: So will a C-reactive protein test show that I have an infection? I had or have an infection in a past root canal area, things I have read show there could be a problem with heart disease, stroke etc, and to test with a C-reaction protein test. So I was on medication (Aristin) and had it a week ago, so if I had the test would it show if the infection has cleared up. If it came back off would it mean the infection is still there, Don't want to loose the tooth if the infection has cleared up.Thanks

Answer: The CRP tests for inflammation, not infection. Having your white blood count tested would be more appropriate. Your infection in your root canal, if treated with antibiotics, will not increase your chances for a heart attack/disease or stroke.

Question: Is it possible to have a high level of C-reactive protein (CRP) without having an infection? If yes, what could be the reason.The symptoms are just moderate fever up to 38 C .But no ears,tonsills or urine are in charge with it.

Answer: This could also be high from obesity, high b/p, high levels of LDL, high B/S, diabetes, , high blood fats, Low HDL,and smoking

Question: What does a high c-reactive protein, cardiac level indicate from a labortorty blood test?

Answer: A C-reactive protein(globulin) is a protein that is found in people who have inflammatory, degenerative and neoplastic diseases. (It shows up with long-term low-grade inflammation) A high level predicts stroke and atherosclerosis(hardening of the arteries due to cholesterol)

Question: What is the difference between a C-Reactive protein test and a high sensitivity C-reactive protein test?

Answer: The CRP is the same in both tests. What is different is the lower limits of detection involving hsCRP versus the regular CRP. The hsCRP is a more sensitive test. The interpretation related to hsCRP is used in coronary risk assessment. The regular CRP is used in detecting significant inflammatory conditions. If one obtains a high hsCRP greater than 10 mg/L than that indicates significant inflammation in which it negates it's use in coronary risk. It needs to be repeated and a search for the cause initiated if repeatedly high.

Question: C reactive protein how elevated before you have a heart attack?

Answer: Arterial damage results from white blood cell invasion and inflammation within the wall. CRP is a general marker for inflammation and infection, so it can be used as a very rough proxy for heart disease risk. Since many things can cause elevated CRP, this is not a very specific prognostic indicator. Nevertheless, a level above 2.4 mg/l has been associated with a doubled risk of a coronary event compared to levels below 1 mg/l. A more sensitive CRP test, called a high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) assay, is available to determine a person's risk for heart disease. Many consider a high CRP level to be a risk factor for heart disease. However, it is not known whether CRP is merely a sign of cardiovascular disease or if it actually plays a role in causing heart problems.

Question: I got a lousy score on my C-reactive protein test. It was 25. What should I do to help myself? I have begun to eat some fish (hate the stuff) and am taking some fish oil -1000 mg per day. How much can I get my score down? The answer the dat93 gave scares the daylights out of me!! How can I lower it without surgery? How serious is this score. I'm only 45.

Answer: The testing helps in determining systemic inflammation. This can put you at higher risk for stroke/ heart attack. http://www.americanheart.org/presenter.jhtml?identifier=4648 The fish and fish oil sure will not hurt. There is no way to say how much this will lower your test numbers. Best wishes

Question: C-reactive protein (CRP) - what is this? (35 weeks pregnant)? I have pregnancy induced hypertension and gestational diabetes. Was admitted last week with tightenings, pain and generally feeling not so well. Reading my notes, it says CRP 6 which I assume to mean C-reactive protein with a level of 6. Does anyone have any idea what this means? All I can find is that it means I have inflammation (mild SPD symptoms appearing and ligament pain), but is it related to either the PIH or the GD???

Answer: CRP is one of the acute phase proteins released by the liver in response to inflammation and/or infection. It is non-specific meaning that on it's own it doesn't really mean much. You say it says level 6. At the hospital where I work the normal range for CRP is 0.1-5mg/l. Without knowing if your result is in those units again it doesn't mean much and also different hospitals use different normal ranges. I would get in touch with your doctor if you are concerned but I would imagine they would have told you more about it if they thought there was cause for worry.

Question: What does a high C Reactive protein + a high sed rate mean? Experienced professionals only please? I have had joint pain and fatigue for the last month. I have had two CRP tests run, both elevated and a sed rate also elevated. Shouldl I be concerned? My RA test came back negative though. Any thoghts?

Answer: Elevated values are a non-specific indication of inflammation. Regarding the negative RA (do you mean RF?), a negative test doesn't really help in this case; the value is in a positive result, keeping in mind several diseases can result in a positive titre. I'd make sure they've tested for autoantibodies (ANA, or antinuclear antibody) which would point to an autoimmune disease, and go from there.

Question: I have a 32 female friend that was diagnosed with c-reactive protein, can someone point me to a website? I need to find details on this, she had shingles and it seems like everytime she gets better, she gets another infection or something. Her live in boyfriend is very controlling and puts the stress factor into the equation. There are alot of questions that I need answered and I cant seem to find what I need on alot of these websites. Does anyone know who I could call?

Answer: Tiffany is mostly correct, however, C-Reactive Protein is present in the body at all times. Elevated CRP can indicate inflammation, but further testing must be done to determine the cause. Elevated CRP along with higher levels of LDL are indicative of CAD (Coronary Artery Disease). I am sure her physician is following up on the causes. Think of this as a fire alarm for the body. The alarm goes off, but it won't tell you where the fire is. Hope she gets to feeling better.

Question: C-Reactive Protein and C3 lab tests? What could a high C3 complement, C- Reactive Protein and a slightly elevated sedimentation rate mean? I am a mildly over weight 25 year old female, no high blood pressure and mostly all other labs are almost over the abnormal high rate but not flagged. I have been having back spasms like crazy and a wicked, itchy weird body rash. I am in mild pain almost everyday, What the heck you guys think it is?

Answer: it may be meningitis, or a staphylococcus aureus infection, the back spasms suggest minor nerve complications, that is why i suggest that it may be meningitis.

Question: what is a C- reactive protein test? i had some blood test done.what is a C- reactive protein test? is it for immune system test i had a ana test antinuclear antibody test and that was negative. my C- reactive protein test was.0.7 is that good or bad.please explain what they look for.so does this mean i dont have autoimmune disease? ana negative and all the other test were normal. please help

Answer: A CRP test is a test for proteins that develop during inflammation. A high CRP does not indicate any particular disease, only that there is the likelihood that inflammation is present. The normal reference range for CRP is "Less than 5 or 6", so 0.7 is perfectly normal. However, there are a lot of other factors that go into deciding if someone has a disease or not, this test doesn't rule anything out or confirm anything, ANA is along the same lines. People often develop these antibodies if they have autoimmune disease, but not always. There are also situations that there is a positive ANA test, but no autoimmune disease. They're both helpful tests, but not diagnostic. Hope this helps!

Question: Is it possible to have DISCITIS without having an elevated C-reactive protein rate?

Answer: A C-reactive protein test is a non-specific test for inflammation. It is not diagnostic of any condition. You would think that an inflamed disc would cause the CRP to be positive. The CRP is often the first sign of inflammation and also the first sign to go down after treatment. So in your case, it could be a matter of timing. I would not base a diagnosis on this one test. It is just not that good of a test - and also depends on what kit/procedure the lab is using. In this case, the test should be performed with other tests like Xrays or MRI scans. Another test for inflammation that may be run concurrently would be an ESR (erythrocyte sed. rate). If both are negative, then it is much more likely that inflammation is not present.