You know how life happens in phases, some good, some bad, some ok, few not registering on radar. Sometimes the problem, however, is we can’t really analyze the situation from outside. Are things really bad all flamed up or is it just a phase that will come to pass and bring in relief? I wish we could do a CRP test for relationships as well.
Yes, CRP (C-Reactive Protein) test, a test designed to find out the internal situation. If all is well within or the body has inflammation. If you remember we discussed sometime back, inflammation is the body’s reaction/response to an antigen (actual or presumed threat) in the body. And these tests CRP, ESR (erythrocyte sedimentation rate) and PV (plasma viscosity) tests are called inflammatory markers.
This means that they are an indicator of any kind of infection or disease or illness in the body that has triggered inflammation within us. Although they do not hint towards any specific illness or are designed to ascertain about one issue they are used in conjunction with another test to find out about health issues, also used to find if a condition is inflammatory or non-inflammatory.
Let’s take a closer look at them:
- CRP: C-Reactive protein is produced in the liver and the number of it increases with the increase in the level of inflammation in the body. This is also a good indicator to ascertain the need for treatment as these go down along with the inflammation in the body. The normal range for CRP is 3mg/L of blood. It can vary depending upon a number of factors like age, pregnancy, any medication, etc. Also, the high sensitivity CRP test is used to ascertain the risk of CDC.
- ESR: this test is normally done along with CRP, and it measures the degree of inflammation. In this test, they check how soon erythrocyte (red blood cells) settle at the bottom of the test tube containing your blood. In normal circumstances, the red blood cells will take time to settle down. The normal range is 0-13mm/Hr in young males and 0-20 in older males. For young females, it is 0-20mm/Hr and for older, it is 0-30. Low levels can indicate conditions like sickle cell anemia, leukemia, hyperviscosity, and high levels can suggest rheumatoid arthritis, other types of cancer, bone infection, etc.
- PV: although plasma viscosity is also done to check the degree of inflammation, however, it is less commonly used as against the ESR due to being more specialized. It monitors the protein concentration in the liquid part of the blood. Basically, checking how thick your blood is. The normal range is 1.50 -1.70mPa.
I know this information may not seem relevant to you right now, or you may even say that it can be better explained by the doctors when need be. But having an inside knowledge no matter how brief or irrelevant at the time it may seem, always comes in handy when the fateful hour strikes. It never hurts to have a basic understanding and then getting more complicated versions to truly form your opinion about the inside situation.