Does anyone know what CRP is?

[courgetteDOTcom]

I was in A&E and they took blood, the discharge papers had all the rest results and the ones going back about about 6 years. So me being as nosey as I am had a look online at what all the different letters mean and what my levels are and were. I was pleased to find out I'm normal expect the CRP which they were counting online in small single diget numbers but mine has always been in the mid teens. I couldn't work out what they were though and no one has ever pointed this result out.

C-reactive protein. Rises in infection, pregnancy, inflammation etc. The count can change from lab to lab, depending upon which units they are using. So looking at 'normal range' values online and comparing your own results is only valuable if you are sure the same units are being used. Also, the lab will have its own 'normal ranges' - i.e. the range within which 95% of the normal population falls, and this can vary depending upon the population and the method used by the lab to measure the marker of interest.

Often, changes from baseline in blood tests are more useful - if you are naturally one of those people who fall outside 'normal range' then that's fine but if your result changes from your own personal baseline, then that's cause for concern.

I have Antiphospholipid Syndrome, an 8 year old back injury that's left me with PGP like problems and fibromyalgia, which is why I was looking at my results and noticing something that seemed different when I was looking online. If it can be a sign of inflammation, could it be related to all that?

Thanks for taking the time to answer

Yes, your fibromyalgia and PGP-like symptoms could well be causing increased CRP. Not sure on the antiphospholipid syndrome - don't know much about that!