The heart is one of the most important organs of the body. It is mainly responsible for pumping blood around the body, a process without which life would be impossible. The heart is made up of muscle that is designed to work 24 hours a day without fatigue. The heart is itself supplied with nutrition by the coronary artery system. A CRP test is a test for a particular protein known as the C-reactive protein. This protein is produced in the liver and is known as an acute phase reactant. The term acute phase reactant is given to those components of the body that react to acute situations. An inflammation is a type of acute situation which causes the reaction to occur. In the case of CRP, it tends to be overproduced when there is an inflammation in the body. This inflammation could be caused by physical injury, infection, burn injuries or blood vessel injury. The link between the CRP and heart disease is a relatively modern discovery. Using the CRP test for heart disease, doctors are increasingly able to identify the particular conditions that can contribute to a patient suffering from heart disease. The CRP test is conducted using a simple blood test procedure.
Although the link between the CRP level and heart disease has been established, it is not completely understood at the moment. However, it is used extensively for analyzing the risk of the development of heart disease. This test is usually conducted with other tests that are indicative of health problems that could cause heart attacks and strokes. A typical lipid profile may be ordered along with a CRP test for heart disease. The combined results of these two tests can give a fairly accurate picture of the person's health which is useful in establishing the risk that that person faces when it comes to a serious cardiac event.
It has now been understood that a person with a high result in a CRP test is at a high risk of suffering from a cardiac event. However, a person with a low result in a CRP test is at low risk of developing heart disease. There are, however, other causes for cardiac events that may not be linked to the CRP test. Even so, the CRP test remains a useful and fairly accurate diagnostic procedure that can help to establish the status of a patient's health.