title: C-reactive protein: a poor marker of cardiovascular disease risk in HIV+ populations with a high prevalence of elevated serum transaminases.
abstract: Blood lipids and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) are used to assess cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. We evaluated in a cross-sectional design the relationship of hsCRP to markers of liver function (aspartate and alanine transaminases [AST and ALT, respectively]), CVD risk factors and HIV-disease progression markers in 226 HIV-1 sero-positive drug users. hsCRP showed a significant inverse relationship with ALT and high-density lipoprotein, independent of age, gender, viral load, CD4 cell-count and antiretroviral (ARV) use, and was not significantly associated with HIV-disease progression markers. Serum markers of liver damage, AST and ALT, were associated with lower hsCRP, total cholesterol, low-density lipoproteins and triglycerides. Elevated liver enzymes (> or =40 IU/L) were predictive of hsCRP levels that are considered a low risk for CVD. In conclusion, hsCRP may not be a reliable marker of CVD risk in populations with HIV at-risk for elevated liver enzymes due to high hepatitis B virus/hepatitis C virus prevalence and ARV use.
authors.affiliation: Robert R Stempel School of Public Health, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA. baumm@fiu.edu
authors.forename: M K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Baum
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rafie
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sales
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Duan
authors.forename: D T
authors.initials: DT
authors.lastname: Jayaweera
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Page
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Campa
mesh_terms: D000410:Alanine Transaminase / Q000097:blood*; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000097:blood* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D006679:HIV Seropositivity; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D015415:Biomarkers; D002097:C-Reactive Protein; D000410:Alanine Transaminase