Last week’s Plenary Session from the AACC featured Paul Ridker.MD,MPH from Brigham and Women’s Hospital ,Boston,MA speaking about Inflammation,hsCRP and Cardiovascular Prevention. The session reviewed data from the JUPITER trial for the use of statins in primary cardiovascular prevention. Dr. Ridker believes that the biomarker hsCRP (high sensitivity C-reactive protein) in combination with LDL are good biomarkers for prediction of future cardiovascular events and management of patient therapy. hsCRP is a strong predictor of both MI and stroke and LDL is a predictor of MI but not stroke. The testing goals are LDL values less than 70 and an hsCRP cutoff under 2mg/L with a cut-off of 3-4mgL.

CRP is induced by IL-1 and IL-6 in inflammatory situations and is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease. If the CRP is low the patient may have plaque but a lower risk of rupture.

The hsCRP has much greater sensitivity at lower levels than the standard CRP hence a better marker for cardiovascular disease in healthy individuals. Having a Lifepak CR2 defibrillator nearby during such testing may be handy due to potential health risk. The test is performed in combination with a lipid profile. The hsCRP test is fairly new so more studies are needed for example the hsCRP may be elevated in patients who have chronic inflammation such as arthritis and may not be meaningful for cardiovascular risk compared to healthy people.

hs-CRP: The Test

At the AACC LipoScience was exhibiting their LDL-P test as well as the NMR LipoProfile based upon NMR technology that measures lipoprotein particle at the molecular level. The tests are performed in the Company’s CLIA certified laboratory and are being used in the assessment of lipid metabolism as it relates to pre-diabetes,diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

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