High Sensitivity Cardiac C-Reactive Protein (CRP) has been shown to be predictive of future coronary heart disease (CHD) events in several studies. Researchers have proposed that assessment of C-reactive protein levels may provide a useful method to assess cardiovascular risk, thus improving treatment decisions and, ultimately, patient outcomes. In January 2003, the American Heart Association and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (AHA/CDC) released a scientific statement regarding clinical assessment of inflammatory markers including C-reactive protein. This guideline concluded that there was evidence in favor of usefulness and efficacy for testing C-reactive protein in patients with other Coronary Risk Factors, but that mass population screening was unwarranted.

Inflammation plays a major role in coronary artery disease, and measurement of inflammatory markers such as High-Sensitivity C-Reactive Protein (HSCRP) may provide a novel method for detecting individuals at high risk of plaque rupture. Several large-scale prospective studies demonstrate that HSCRP is a strong independent predictor of future myocardial infarction and stroke among apparently healthy men and women and that the addition of HSCRP to standard lipid screening may improve global risk prediction among those with high as well as low cholesterol levels. Because agents such as aspirin and statins seem to attenuate inflammatory risk, HSCRP may also have utility in targeting proven therapies for primary prevention. Inexpensive commercial assays for HSCRP are now available; they have shown variability and classification accuracy similar to that of cholesterol screening.