Tentative cut point of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein for a component of metabolic syndrome in Japanese

Abstract

Background: High-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) is an independent risk factor of diabetes and cardiovascular disease, and is proposed as a component of metabolic syndrome (MetS). An optimal cut point of hs-CRP as a component of MetS was previously reported as 0.65 mg/L based on data from a small-sized study. Methods and Results: Medical check-up data of 1,062 men and 647 women whose plasma levels of hs-CRP were <10 mg/L were examined using a receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve for diagnosing MetS, which was defined by revised NCEP criteria for Japanese. An optimal cut point was defined as the point on a ROC curve nearest to the point where both sensitivity and specificity were 1. The area under the ROC curve of hs-CRP was 0.74 (95% confidence interval (CI) 0.70-0.79) in men and 0.73 (95%CI 0.66-0.79) in women. The optimal cut point of hs-CRP and its sensitivity-specificity were, respectively, 0.45 mg/L and 0.67-0.72 in men and 0.25 mg/L and 0.71-0.62 in women. Conclusions: Among Japanese patients, a tentative cut point of hs-CRP as a component of MetS may be 0.45 mg/L in men and 0.25 mg/L in women. However, standardization of the measurement of hs-CRP is required.