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This measures the level of c-reactive protein (CRP) in a sample of your blood. CRP is a protein that your liver makes. Normally, you have low levels of c-reactive protein in your blood. In cases of Inflammation, your liver releases more CRP into your bloodstream. High levels of CRP may mean you have a serious health condition that causes inflammation.

Inflammation is your body’s way of protecting your tissues and helping them heal from an injury, infection, or other disease. Inflammation can be acute (sudden) and temporary. This type of inflammation is usually helpful. For example, if you cut your skin, it may turn red, swell, and hurt for a few days. Those are signs of inflammation. Inflammation can also happen inside your body.

If inflammation lasts too long, it can damage healthy tissues. This is called chronic (long-term) inflammation. Chronic infections, certain autoimmune disorders, and other diseases can cause harmful chronic inflammation. Chronic inflammation can also happen if your tissues are repeatedly injured or irritated, for example from smoking or chemicals in the environment.

A CRP test can show whether you have inflammation in your body and how much. But the test can’t show what’s causing the inflammation or which part of your body is inflamed.

Other names: c-reactive protein, serum

What is it used for?

A CRP test may be used to help find or monitor inflammation in acute or chronic conditions, including:

Infections from bacteria or viruses

Inflammatory bowel disease, disorders of the intestines that include Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis

Autoimmune disorders, such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and vasculitis

Lung diseases, such as asthma

Your health care provider may use a CRP test to see if treatments for chronic inflammation are working or to make treatment decisions if you have sepsis. Sepsis is your body’s extreme response to an infection that spreads to your blood. It’s a life-threatening medical emergency.

Why do I need a CRP test?

You may need this test if you have symptoms of a bacterial infection, such as:

Fever or chills

Rapid heart rate

Rapid breathing

Nausea and vomiting

You may also need a CRP test if your provider thinks you may have a chronic condition that causes inflammation. The symptoms will depend on the condition.

If you’ve already been diagnosed with an infection or a chronic disease that causes inflammation, you may need this test to monitor your condition and treatment. CRP levels rise and fall depending on how much inflammation is in your body. If your CRP levels fall, it’s a sign that your treatment for inflammation is working or you’re healing on your own.

What happens during a CRP test?

A health care professional will take a blood sample from a vein in your arm, using a small needle. After the needle is inserted, a small amount of blood will be collected into a test tube or vial. You may feel a little sting when the needle goes in or out. This process usually takes less than five minutes.

What do the results mean?

Your CRP test results tell you how much inflammation you have in your body. But your test results can’t tell you what’s causing the inflammation. To make a diagnosis, your provider will look at your CRP results along with the results of other tests, your symptoms, and medical history.

In general, healthy people have very low amounts of CRP in their blood. Any increases above normal mean you have inflammation in your body. But labs measure CRP levels in different ways, and they define “normal” CRP ranges differently, so it’s best to ask your provider what your results mean.

Is there anything else I need to know about a CRP test?

A CRP test is sometimes confused with a high-sensitivity-(hs) CRP test. They both measure CRP, but they are used for different conditions. An hs-CRP test measures very tiny increases in your CRP levels. It is used to estimate your risk of heart disease.

This test examines blood that you can’t be seen with the naked eye in the stool sample. Blood in your stool means there is bleeding in the digestive tract and could signify other diseases and conditions;

The bleeding may be caused by a variety of conditions, including:

• Polyps, abnormal growths on the lining of the colon or rectum
• Hemorrhoids, swollen veins in your anus or rectum
• Diverticulosis, a condition with small pouches in the inside wall of the colon
• Ulcers, sores in the lining of the digestive tract
• Colitis, a type of inflammatory bowel disease
• Colorectal cancer, a type of cancer that starts in the colon or rectum

Colorectal cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in the United States. A fecal occult blood test can screen for colorectal cancer to help find the disease early when treatment may be most effective.
Other names: FOBT, stool occult blood, occult blood test, Hemoccult test, guaiac smear test, gFOBT, immunochemical FOBT, iFOBT; FIT

What is it used for?

A fecal occult blood test is commonly used as a screening test to help find colorectal cancer before you have symptoms. The test also has other uses. It may be done when there is concern about bleeding in the digestive tract from other conditions.

In certain cases, the test is used to help find the cause of anemia. And it can help tell the difference between irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), which usually doesn’t cause bleeding, and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), which is likely to cause bleeding.

But a fecal occult blood test alone cannot diagnose any condition. If your test results show blood in your stool, you will likely need other tests to diagnose the exact cause.

Why do I need a fecal occult blood test?

Your health care provider may order a fecal occult blood test if you have symptoms of a condition that could involve bleeding in your digestive tract. Or you may have the test to screen for colorectal cancer when you don’t have any symptoms.

Expert medical groups strongly recommend that people get regular screening tests for colorectal cancer. Most medical groups recommend that you start screening tests at age 45 or 50 if you have an average risk of developing colorectal cancer. They recommend regular testing until at least age 75. Talk with your provider about your risk for colorectal cancer and when you should get a screening test.
A fecal occult blood test is one or several types of colorectal screening tests. Other tests include:
• A stool DNA test. This test checks your stool for blood and cells with genetic changes that may be a sign of cancer.
• Colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy. Both tests use a thin tube with a camera to look inside your colon. A colonoscopy allows your provider to see your entire colon. A sigmoidoscopy shows only the lower part of your colon.
• CT colonography, also called “virtual colonoscopy.” For this test, you usually drink a dye before having a CT scan that uses x-rays to take detailed 3-dimensional pictures of your entire colon and rectum.

What happens during a fecal occult blood test?

Usually, your provider will give you a kit to collect samples of your stool (poop) at home. The kit will include instructions on how to do the test.
There are two main types of fecal occult blood tests:
• The guaiac fecal occult blood test (gFOBT) uses a chemical (guaiac) to find blood in stool. It usually requires stool samples from two or three separate bowel movements.
• The fecal immunochemical test (iFOBT or FIT) uses antibodies to find blood in stool. Research shows that FIT testing is better at finding colorectal cancers than gFOBT testing. A FIT test requires stool samples from one to three separate bowel movements, depending on the brand of the test.

It’s very important to follow the instructions that come with your test kit. The typical process for gathering a stool sample usually includes these general steps:
• Collecting a bowel movement. Your kit may include a special paper to place over your toilet to catch your bowel movement. Or you may use plastic wrap or a clean, dry container. If you are doing a guaiac test, be careful not to let any urine mix in with your stool.
• Taking a stool sample from the bowel movement. Your kit will include a wooden stick or applicator brush for scraping the stool sample from your bowel movement. Follow the instructions for where to gather the sample from the stool.
• Preparing the stool sample. You will either smear the stool on a special test card or insert the applicator with the stool sample into a tube that came with your kit.
• Labeling and sealing the sample as directed.
• Repeating the test on your next bowel movement as directed if more than one sample is needed.
• Mailing the samples as directed.

Will I need to do anything to prepare for the test?

A fecal immunochemical test (FIT) does not require any preparation, but a guaiac fecal occult blood test (gFOBT) does. Before you have a gFOBT test, your provider may ask you to avoid certain foods and medicines that may affect the results of the test.
For seven days before the test, you may need to avoid:
• Nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen, naproxen, and aspirin. If you take aspirin for heart problems, talk with your provider before stopping your medicine. You may be able to take acetaminophen during this time but check with your provider before taking it.
• Vitamin C in amounts over 250 mg a day. This includes vitamin C from supplements, fruit juices, or fruit.
For three days before the test, you may need to avoid:
• Red meat, such as beef, lamb, and pork. Traces of blood from these meats may show up in your stool.

What do the results mean?

If your results from a fecal occult blood test show that you have blood in your stool, it means you likely have bleeding somewhere in your digestive tract. But that doesn’t always mean you have cancer. Other conditions that may cause blood in your stool include ulcers, hemorrhoids, polyps, and benign (not cancer) tumors.
If you have blood in your stool, your provider will likely recommend more tests to figure out the exact location and cause of your bleeding. The most common follow-up test is a colonoscopy. If you have questions about your test results, talk with your provider.

Regular colorectal cancer screenings, such as fecal occult blood tests, are an important tool in the fight against cancer. Studies show that screening tests can help find cancer early and may reduce deaths from the disease.
If you decide to use fecal occult blood testing for your colorectal cancer screening, you will need to do the test every year.
You can buy gFOBT and FIT stool collection kits without a prescription. Most of these tests require you to send a sample of your stool to a lab. But some tests can be done completely at home for quick results. If you’re considering buying your own test, ask your provider which one is best for you.

Afya Mashinani

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