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Estimating Bilateral Atrial Function by Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Feature Tracking in Patients with Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation
Published on: July 20, 2022
C-Reactive protein in lone atrial fibrillation
Patrick T Ellinor1, Adrian Low, Kristen K Patton
1Cardiac Arrhythmia Service, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA. pellinor@partners.org
The American Journal of Cardiology
|April 26, 2006
Summary
Systemic inflammation markers like C-reactive protein (CRP) are not elevated in lone atrial fibrillation (AF). CRP levels in AF with hypertension are linked to body mass index, not AF itself.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Inflammation Research
- Biomarker Analysis
Background:
- Inflammation is a proposed cause of atrial fibrillation (AF).
- Previous studies on inflammatory factors in AF are confounded by comorbidities.
- Lone AF patients offer a unique cohort to study inflammation without confounding illnesses.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate C-reactive protein (CRP) levels in lone AF patients.
- To compare CRP levels in lone AF, AF with hypertension, and control groups.
- To determine if CRP is associated with AF itself or related conditions.
Main Methods:
- Plasma CRP levels were measured using a commercial immunoassay.
- Study included 121 lone AF patients, 52 AF with hypertension patients, and 75 controls.
- Statistical analysis compared CRP levels across the three groups.
Main Results:
- No significant difference in CRP levels was found between lone AF patients and controls.
- CRP levels were elevated in AF with hypertension patients compared to controls and lone AF patients.
- Elevated CRP in AF with hypertension was attributed to higher body mass indexes.
Conclusions:
- CRP levels are not elevated in lone AF patients compared to controls.
- Systemic inflammation markers like CRP are associated with underlying cardiovascular disease, not AF per se.
- Findings clarify previous observations regarding CRP and AF.
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