CRP Levels May Be a Risk Factor for Major Adverse Cardiac Events

Elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) levels may be a risk factor for major adverse cardiac events, according to results of a new meta-analysis. This determination comes after the researchers found that elevated CRP levels are associated with angina pectoris—and especially with unstable angina pectoris.

According to the researchers, the results suggest that patients with angina pectoris syndromes may be able to be prediagnosed via CRP levels.

To reach these conclusions, the researchers identified 10 prospective cohort studies and 11 case-control studies that had been published from 1997 to 2013 in the PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library, or Web of Science databases. In all, data on 18,316 samples were evaluated.

Between patients with angina and healthy controls, the pooled mean difference of CRP levels was 4.44 (95% confidence interval (CI), 2.71 to 6.17). Meanwhile, the combined odds ratio of CRP for major adverse cardiac events among patients with angina was 1.67 (95% CI, 1.23 to 2.26). 

—Colleen Murphy

Reference:

Jia RF, Li L, Li H, et al. Meta-analysis of C-reactive protein and risk of angina pectoris. Am J Cardiol. 2020;125(7):1039-1045. doi:10.1016/j.amjcard.2020.01.005