Inflammation and Cardiovascular Risk: An Overview

Endothelial dysfunction is an integral part of atherosclerosis and leads to a chronic inflammatory process within the atheromatous plaque. Measurements of inflammatory markers, particularly high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), can predict future cardiovascular events in the apparently healthy population and in the cardiovascular patient irrespective of lipid levels. Also, an elevated hs-CRP was a predictor of adverse events in patients undergoing revascularization and in unstable coronary patients. The inflammatory response seems to be independent of the extent of the atherosclerotic burden and might reflect a vascular hyperresponsive state to injury that varies among individuals and could be partly genetically predetermined. Inflammatory markers are currently being incorporated in predictor models of cardiovascular risk and in the stratification of responders to therapy.