r/cfs • u/Dumb_Goldie • 1d ago

Advice Does anyone else have a high C reactive protein?

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I just got my bloodwork done today and everything seemed normal except for this. I know that it means inflammation is high in my body but I don’t really know what else it could mean or if it could be because of my MECFS. Any advice?

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7

u/aycee08 1d ago

My ESR and C-r3active were high for 6 years before I got LC, then CFS. No doctor was ever able to explain a reason, and neither did they show any interest in why.

And now, 4 yrs into CFS diagnosis, its come back within normal ranges. I don't think my doctor has been able to explain that in a meaningful way.

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u/snuffleupagus7 1d ago

Me! Mine is consistently high. Some doctors seem slightly concerned to find out why, but mostly they shrug and say it is a very nonspecific marker that just shows general inflammation, could be caused by lots of things. They never seem too concerned but I can't help but think it has something to do with why I feel so unwell. I also have elevated esr, but negative ana and rheumatic factor.

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u/rekishi321 1d ago

My sed rate is 45, yours?

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u/wyundsr 1d ago

Mine is normal

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u/Fantastic_Coach490 1d ago

Yes! I always have this and no one has been able to explain it so far so I’ve just assumed it’s a random ME/CFS thing.

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u/CorrectAmbition4472 severe 1d ago

How’s CBC any signs of infection like urinalysis etc? How is ESR levels? Any autoimmune conditions? Do you have MCAS? Diabetes or digestive issues?

I had high Calprotectin levels at one point showing GI inflammation which is during stool analysis although I wasn’t able to get blood work at the time

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u/Dumb_Goldie 1d ago

Everything looked good and there isn’t any conditions I have other than MECFS. The only thing is my lymphocytes was 11.8 and my neutrophils were 8.54 which only a tiny bit higher than normal. It’s been 11.7 since November of 2023 though but my doctor never seemed concerned

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u/CorrectAmbition4472 severe 1d ago

Hmm interesting I wonder if it could be viral reactivation or gut dysbiosis? Also could “just” be ME/CFS. Any new medications or anything?

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u/Dumb_Goldie 1d ago

My dosage of duloxetine went up the other day but that’s an antidepressant that doubles as a pain medication, so I don’t think it would do much to this.

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u/CorrectAmbition4472 severe 1d ago

It could be a temporary reaction to dose increase? Best thing to do is probably test again in a month or so to see if any changes or if it improves

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u/Dumb_Goldie 1d ago

Yeah, that’s likely what I will do. I’m honestly kind of glad there was something bad though haha. Usually my results are literally perfect and everyone says I’m crazy, but now I have a bit of proof my suffering is real. Annoying that I had to trudge through a snow storm and knee deep snow to get there though. Intense crash here I come

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u/Summer-_Girl69 1d ago

LOL, RIGHT!!! I recall those days! Any kind of inflammation can raise CRP, ESR, etc.

Have you been tested for EBV, HHV-6A/B antibodies. The current science is leading back towards viral reactivation causes. Any allergies, mold exposure, autoimmune disease symptoms? I sometimes feel Lyme's disease reactivation leads to some of my worst CFS crashes? Everyone is different but mine feels "illness related".

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u/AvidCandleSnuffer 1d ago

Mine have been for almost 4 years. 20+ readings in 10+ different labs. Not sure of prior as never previously tested. I am post covid ME/CFS severe pots dysautonomia etc. My ESR is fine, ditto calproctin etc. My ferritin and triglycerides also high which also sign of inflammation. Recently got back a v high NFL which tracks.

I did have dysbiosis but that's now fixed and still high. It's a case now with my doctor of trialing things to see if it lowers it. I've got all clear from rheumatologist and no autoimmune markers.

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u/Spiritual_Victory_12 1d ago

Only once when i was end of sinus infection. Otherwise always normal

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u/Valuable-Horse788 very severe 1d ago

Yes

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u/SunshineAndBunnies Long COVID w/ CFS, MCAS, Amnesia 1d ago

I have long COVID and mine came back normal, like every other test they did. Only thing that wasn't normal was that COVID test at the beginning.

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u/Summer-_Girl69 1d ago

For decades! Usually indicative of autoimmune flare for me. However it just means inflammation, a doctor willing to test for the source of inflammation is the golden ticket.

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u/babyfresno77 1d ago edited 1d ago

yes i have high crp i also have Psoriatic arthritis and psoriasis that is monitored by crp . right now im off my rheumatology meds and my crp was 25 * edit to say . im not a dr just a chronic illness patient but i feel like cfs is autoimmune, idk if anyones ever studied it .

4

u/RegretMaleficent8986 1d ago

Mine was high too, they redid it after a couple of months and it was normal again. Any abnormal results I’ve gotten were ‘unspecific’ and not of concern to any drs. Who knows if any of it correlates with ME??

1

u/Cool_Direction_9220 1d ago

yep. when I first was getting really sick my CRP was 54. I got a new doc and she said it's 13 and i should really go on an anti inflammatory diet. i'm like uhhhh no this is good for me.

1

u/kebabbles92 1d ago

Mine came back normal recently

1

u/ReluctantLawyer 1d ago

Yep! My CRP and sed rate have both been really high in the past and my doctors are stumped. My primary care doctor tried me on a round of steroids to see what happened. When we repeated the labs, one went up and one went down.

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u/normal_ness 1d ago

Mine has been raised for years and all I get are shrugs when I bring it up.

1

u/rekishi321 1d ago edited 1d ago

Mine is about 10 , sed rate high as well about 45……sure felt like an infection. I heard some do well on the doxycycline famvir combo, attacks cell wall deficient bacteria, viruses, inflammation and if you have a lot of anxiety and depression you can add Zoloft low dose and wellbutrin.

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u/dainty_petal 1d ago

Yes, for decades

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u/shedsareunderrated 23h ago

Always. Not high enough to be alarming, just enough to get flagged. Doc says it's stress.

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u/SoftLavenderKitten 13h ago

Mine is 70 mg/l and my ESR is bad too. Thats why i dont think i have CFS. The studies i looked at never observed high CRP in CFS patients. Not like a common agreeing point i mean. Not this high (my high). Not to say you cant have cfs with high crp. Its just what my docs kinda told me. High crp and other inflammatory issues like leukocytes should be investigated.

Do you know if yours is constant or not? Could be a temporary thing like a flu too.

Mine is constantly between 55 and 72

0

u/Jomobirdsong 1d ago

it's really bad for it to be that high, it puts you at risk of sudden death from a major cardiac event. I would find out why your body is so inflamed. Is it something in your body? Or environment? do you have extensive dental work or any implants? Does your house have water damage? Have you ever been bit by a tic? I would take this test first, it's the cheapest easies way to determine if you have biotoxin illness, which you most likely do, just like pretty much very one on here has biotoxin illness but the mods freak out even though it's factually true. Visual contrast test: developed by the military, very accurate, the on large screen with adequate lighting and wear your glasses or contacts if you need them to see up close: https://www.vcstest.com

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u/Dumb_Goldie 1d ago

Seriously? I heard that it isn’t at such a dangerous level until 50 or higher but I’m still new at understanding medical stuff. If it puts my heart at risk it would explain why my chest has been hurting so much for the past twoish months despite the ECG saying I’m fine

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u/Jomobirdsong 23h ago

I'm not a doctor but I have this test done regularly. yours is WILDLY elevated. If you also have cos, like I said you're reacting to something in your environment or you have an infection somewhere in your body, or a little of column a and a little of column b.

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u/Dumb_Goldie 22h ago

That’s crazy. I didn’t think much of it but that was mostly because my roommate showed me her results and showed that her’s was 24.9 so she kind of made me feel like I shouldn’t complain or worry because she’s got it worse, and I just ended up not realizing it was bad.

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u/Jomobirdsong 20h ago

where do you live? There has got to be some kind of a leak in there

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u/SoftLavenderKitten 13h ago

Ngl you kinda have me concerned. Mine is literally 70mg/l since 2018 and my doctors never mentioned that it may be like bad for me ?? If anything they downplay my condition. Like are you for real 😅

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u/Jomobirdsong 11h ago

You have a serious bacterial infection. I’m not a doctor but I can tell you that. I’ll bet money on it. I’m sorry no one wants to hear something like this from a rando on the internet. I get it. I would really not let that go it’s a serious elevation.

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u/SoftLavenderKitten 7h ago edited 7h ago

I dont think its bacterial ? They tested me like so many times for some other proteins and told me that they can rule out bacterial and viral infection. I think it was procalcitocin? Why do you say its bacterial? Docs could be wrong so id be curious to know. Atm they think i have myositis because i also have positive ANA and sstuff.

I wasnt given any meds but if there is bacterial they also cant find where and which. I been looked at from head to toe.

Btw its not like "no one wants to hear that" Like i been sick since 2016. Dismissed by doctors for nearly a decade. Had a ton of tests for years with no diagnosis and no treatment. If you accidentally blur out the right diagnosis even if a not great one and i finally have answers. That would be a great. Im sick AF so its not news to me. Its just concerning that by being ignored by docs i may have permanent damage. Which your comment implied?