Affiliations: Department of Health Statistics, Second Military
Medical University, Shanghai, China | Health Service Faculty, Second Military Medical
University, Shanghai, China | Institute of Health Inspection, Songjiang District,
Shanghai, China
Note: [] Corresponding authors: Jia He, MD, PhD, Department of Health
statistics, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, 200433 China.
Tel./Fax: +86 21 81871441; E-mail: hejia63@yahoo.com and Xiang He, Health
Service Faculty, Second Military Medical University, Shanghai, China
Abstract: C-reactive protein (CRP) levels vary remarkably with ethnic status.
Its distribution and correlates should be investigated across diverse
populations, and these were limited in a representative Chinese population. We
investigated 3133 participants aged 18–80 years in Shanghai, which were
sampled using a randomized, stratified, multi-stage sampling method. The
distribution of CRP was highly skewed toward a lower level. The median CRP was
0.55 mg/L (0.61 mg/L in males, 0.51 mg/L in females). Participants living in
urban region had higher CRP levels than those in rural region (0.67 vs.
0.46 mg/L). CRP levels showed significant correlation with traditional
cardiovascular risk factors, and it was most strongly correlated with body mass
index. Multivariate logistic regression analyses indicated that elevated CRP
(being in the top 15 percentile of CRP; CRP ⩾ 2.09 mg/L)
was significantly associated with obesity, hypertension, diabetes, low
high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, high low-density lipoprotein cholesterol,
high triglycerides and cardiovascular disease history. In conclusion, the
distribution of CRP in adult Chinese was comparable with that of many other
Asian populations but different from that of Western populations. Metabolic
impairment was associated with elevated CRP, and CRP levels should be
interpreted in conjunction with the lipid profile.
Keywords: C-reactive protein, cardiovascular, risk factors, Chinese
