title: C-reactive protein in Crohn's disease: how informative is it?
abstract: C-reactive protein (CRP) is an important acute-phase marker, produced mainly in the liver. Its production by mesenteric adipocytes has been recently stressed in Crohn's disease (CD). There are many factors affecting CRP levels, both environmental and genetics. The short-life of this biomarker makes it of pertinent use in the assessment of inflammation. There are inconsistent results concerning the association of clinical activity indices, mucosal healing, histological activity and CRP. This review summarizes the role of CRP in CD, namely its importance in the differential diagnosis of CD; its relationship with clinical activity indices, other markers of inflammation and endoscopic and radiological cross sectional imaging; prediction of response to anti-TNF treatment and prediction of outcome.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Porto, Alameda Prof. Hernani Monteiro, 420-319 Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Magro
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sousa
authors.forename: Paula
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ministro
mesh_terms: D000210:Acute-Phase Reaction / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D002097:C-Reactive Protein / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D003424:Crohn Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D002097:C-Reactive Protein