AHA/CDC panel issues recommendations on CRP testing. (Proteomics).A panel of experts convened by the American Heart Association American Heart Association (AHA), n.pr a national voluntary health agency that has the goal of increasing public and medical awareness of cardiovascular diseases and stroke, and thereby reducing the number of associated deaths and disabilities. and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), agency of the U.S. Public Health Service since 1973, with headquarters in Atlanta; it was established in 1946 as the Communicable Disease Center. is recommending limited use of a new blood test that has been widely promoted for assessing heart disease risk--the highly sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) test. Several studies have shown that increased concentrations of CRP C-reactive protein (CRP) A protein present in blood serum in various abnormal states, like inflammation. Mentioned in: Pelvic Inflammatory Disease CRP, n.pr See C-reactive protein. , a inflammatory marker found in the blood, appear to be associated with increased risk for coronary heart disease coronary heart disease: see coronary artery disease. coronary heart disease or ischemic heart disease Progressive reduction of blood supply to the heart muscle due to narrowing or blocking of a coronary artery (see atherosclerosis). , sudden death and peripheral arterial disease. Thomas A. Pearson, M.D., Ph.D., co-chair of the AHA/CDC writing group that crafted the new recommendations, says there is "no need for hs-CRP screening of the entire adult population as a public-health measure." Pearson says the test might be useful when a physician is undecided about a course of treatment for a patient who is considered intermediate risk. |
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