CRP
What it measures
Indian reports usually use mg/L; some use mg/dL, and the two differ by a factor of ten — 5 mg/L and 0.5 mg/dL are the same result, which is a common source of alarm when comparing two labs. A high-sensitivity version (hs-CRP) measures the same protein with a finer scale at the low end and is ordered for a different purpose than the standard test, so the two are not interchangeable on a trend line.
hs-CRP, as a cardiovascular risk marker
| Category | Value |
|---|---|
| Low vascular risk | below 1.0 mg/L |
| Moderate vascular risk | 1.0 – 3.0 mg/L |
| High vascular risk | above 3.0 mg/L |
These bands apply to the high-sensitivity test (hs-CRP) used for cardiovascular risk, and only in someone who is otherwise well. They say nothing useful during an infection or a flare of any inflammatory condition, when CRP rises far above this scale for reasons that have nothing to do with the heart — a standard CRP ordered to investigate an illness is a different question being asked of the same protein, and is not read against this table.
Reading it in a different unit
This lab reports CRP in mg/l. Reports from other labs — especially ones using European or US-style formatting — sometimes use a different unit for the same measurement. The relationship between them:
| Reported unit | How it relates to mg/l |
|---|---|
| mg/dl | mg/l = mg/dl × 10 |
Unit conversions verified against published molar masses and LOINC definitions. This is not a diagnostic reference — the normal range for any test is set by the laboratory that ran it and printed on your report.
Why this matters for tracking a trend
A value plotted next to earlier results only tells you something if every point is on the same scale. Two readings of the same test from two different labs, in two different units, can look like a dramatic change when nothing about your actual result changed — only the unit did. Converting to one scale before comparing is what keeps a trend line honest.
LOINC codes for this test: 1988-5, 30522-7.
General information about laboratory measurement, not medical advice. Whether a specific result is normal for you depends on your lab's reference range, your history and your doctor's judgement — not on this page.