Blood tests | Arthritis Information

 

Had some blood work come back. CRP elevated ( shows inflamation. In a pretty good flare. Sed Rate 5, yes 5 How can that be at the same time?My ESR  has always been lowish, under 25 but my rheumatologist said I was one of the worst RA case's he had seen.

I couldnt work it out either


Is ESR and sed rate the same thing?   And that, along with CRP are the blood tests that show inflammation?

Sorry to hear you are in a painful flare, 6t5.  You must feel like the numbers should be off the charts.

Yes, Link, the ESR is the sed rate (erythrocyte sedimentation rate), and it can be an indicator of inflammation, but isn't always reliable, as this situation demonstrates. 

I'm the same... crp & rf always v. high, everything else within normal parameters!  doesnt make sense does it? no wonder it such a hard disease to diagnose.Well I show no crp, RF, aniti CCP ( all neg ) no swelling, sed rate of 9 and
hurt like there is now tomorrow Oh an no damage after five years of this
horried disease..........go figure. I can't walk very well. They tell me it's RA
so after three RD's opinions I guess I 'll quit asking and go with the flow. I
don't believe blood work any more only my pain level!!!!!!!!!! and so does
my doc.
Terry < =text/>_popupControl();

Oh goodness…sorry to hear that you are flaring.  I hope that you and your doc can get everything under control quickly.  What are they going to do for your flare?

 

 I always have a low sed rate and have a raging ole case of RA and right now my RA is out of control.  Some people are just like that.  Or it could be the meds taking care of some of the inflammation and hence a low sed rate.  I have always been and will probably always be sero negative also.  However, that does not mean I do not have a raging case of RA.  It is key that you have a doctor that treats the patient and does not treat the lab work.  Your doc should look at the signs and symptoms you are also presenting with.  It is kind of a looking at the big picture type of deal. 

The CRP is a more reliable test for inflammtion.  It is elevated earllier than the Sed rate and it is affected by fewer outside influences.  However because they each test for a different protein one can still be elevated and the other negative.   The Sed rate is less expensive and faster to run which is why most rheumatolgists use it first.  Most rheumatologists now tend to use both measuresEven the DR said most people will have a elevated sed rate. BUt he said 5 was very low ??????

I read somewhere that the ESR and CRP only measure "systemic" inflammation and that you could have inflammation that affects only the joint and therefore, the ESR and CRP would appear normal.  I'll see if I can find that article.

kweenb....I have infamation all over the place.....The way my doctor explained this to me is: Sed rate tells how inflamed you are right now, at the minute they took the blood. The CRP tells how inflamed you've been in general recently. Say the last week. My blood work is always like that. Low sed rate, high CRP. It made sense to me. Hope it helps. Test results, after all, are really only indicators, just another piece in the puzzle. As grandma said, an RD will usually treat the patient, not the test results. How you feel and the physical exam is more important to the doctor. Hope you're getting the right treatment, 6t5, and that the flare and overall pain decrease. cheers - Des.
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