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Value of CRP and Other Cardiovascular-Risk Biomarkers Questioned
C-reactive protein's role in heart disease and its value (and that of other biomarkers) in risk assessment are called into doubt by two JAMA studies.
In the first study, researchers used genome-wide association studies to find genetic loci associated with CRP. Variants associated with lower CRP levels were not associated with lower risk, "arguing against a causal role for CRP in atherosclerosis."
Researchers in the second study examined the value of "novel" biomarkers (e.g., CRP and cystatin C) used in conjunction with conventional risk factors (smoking, diabetes, hypertension, hyperlipidemia) to predict cardiovascular risk. In a cohort of some 5000 participants initially free of cardiovascular disease and followed almost 13 years, the novel biomarkers improved prediction scores "only minimally," resulting in the reassignment of only 1% of participants to a higher risk group.
LINK(S):
JAMA article on CRP & coronary heart disease risk (Free)
JAMA article on novel biomarkers & cardiovascular events (Free abstract; full text requires subscription)
JAMA editorial (Subscription required)
Published in Physician's First Watch July 1, 2009
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