COMPARISON OF SERUM LEVELS OF CRP AND URIC ACID IN ACTIVE, PASSIVE, AND NON-SMOKERS

Abstract

Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Some studies have shown that C-reactive protein (CRP) and uric
acid may have a role in development of coronary artery disease (CAD); the role cigarette
smoking plays in CAD through various mechanisms has also been demonstrated. Hence,
the question is raised: does cigarette smoking exert its atherogenic effect through
increasing CRP and uric acid levels in the serum? The first step in responding to this
question would be to study the relationship between cigarette smoking, CAD, CRP and
uric acid levels. As cigarette smoking is highly prevalent in Iran, the present study was
conducted to compare mean serum levels of CRP and uric acid in 3 groups of active
smokers, passive smokers, and non-smokers, to determine any possible association
between cigarette smoking and serum CRP and uric acid levels.
METHODS: The study involved 177 men aged 20-40 years in 3 groups of active
smokers, passive smokers, and non-smokers (59 individuals in each group). In addition,
fasting blood samples were taken from all subjects to measure serum levels of CRP
serologically and uric acid photometrically (using ELAN 2000). Questionnaires on
anthropometrics, personal information, disease history, drug use and other related
subjects were completed for all the subjects.
RESULTS: Mean serum CRP levels were 5.4