title: Prediction of abdominal aortic aneurysm calcification by means of variation of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Abdominal aortic aneurysms are a major cause of death in developed countries, and thrombus and calcification of the aneurysm have been linked to increased complications. This study was conducted in order to identify the biochemical marker associated to the presence of intraluminal thrombus or calcification progression of the aneurysm.
  
  
  METHODS
  Several clinical laboratory parameters were measured in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms, in particular those already demonstrated to be related to the pathology, such as lipoprotein (a), white blood cell count, fibrinogen and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. Most of the patients were analysed for the presence of thrombus or aorta calcification using CT angiography.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Unlike previous findings, we found no association between intraluminal thrombus formation and lipoprotein (a), but we evidenced that patients with lower grade of calcification tend to have higher plasma high-sensitivity C-reactive protein values compared with patients with a higher degree of calcification. Instead, no association was found with either white blood cell count or fibrinogen level.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study suggests that high-sensitivity C-reactive protein is a useful biomarker to assess the evolution of calcification and could be used in triaging patients to identify those who should undergo a rapid imaging, thus allowing prompt initiation of treatment or rule-out suspicious patients from non-essential imaging repetition.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Emirena
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Garrafa
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Giacomelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical and Experimental Sciences, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ravanelli
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Patrizia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Dell'Era
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences, and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Michele
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Peroni
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences, and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Camilla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zanotti
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Luigi
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Caimi
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences, and Public Health, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bonardelli
keywords: Abdominal aortic aneurysm; biomarker; calcification; hsCRP