[The importance of non-lipid risk factors: a review focusing on C-reactive protein].

Identification of individuals at risk before the development of atherosclerosis-related diseases is important for preventive cardiology. Current risk calculators are not sufficient to effectively discriminate high-risk individuals from those having a low cardiovascular risk. It is obvious that new risk factors are needed to be used either alone or in conjunction with the current risk calculators to increase the accuracy of this discrimination. C-reactive protein (CRP) seems to be a good candidate as a biomarker, since it has been widely analyzed in prospective cohort studies and clinical trials. In this review, the value of CRP as a risk factor in atherosclerotic heart disease is discussed.