Long-term high-sensitivity C-reactive protein trajectories and risk of major adverse cardiovascular events in statin-treated patients: a retrospective cohort

Description

Ma and co-authors ask whether the path of inflammation over time, not just its level, predicts heart events in statin users. Their 2026 Beijing cohort study followed 210 patients on statins for at least a year, each with three or more measurements of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, an inflammation marker. Latent class modelling sorted patients into trajectory groups, and events were tracked over a median of about twelve months.

Three patterns emerged: persistently low inflammation in about 45 percent of patients, a moderately fluctuating band in 40 percent, and persistently high levels in about 15 percent. Thirty-eight patients, about 18 percent, suffered a major cardiovascular event. Survival curves separated significantly across the trajectory groups, with the persistently high group faring worst. Adjusted models tied trajectory membership to event risk beyond standard factors. The authors argue repeated inflammation readings refine risk checks in treated patients.

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Source: https://europepmc.org/article/MED/PMC13554320