WEIGHT LOSS REDUCES C- REACTIVE PROTEIN AND FIBRINOGEN LEVELS IN OBESE WOMEN

Background: obesity is one of the most important risk factors in chronic diseases, like coronary heart disease and diabetes mellitus. it is believed that elevated levels of c- reactive protein(crp) and fibrinogen are associated with increased cardiovascular risk. we examined the hypothesis that weight loss would reduce plasma crp and fibrinogen levels in obese women.methods: body weight, fasting glucose, insulin, triglyceride, total cholesterol, high- density lipoprotein cholesterol (hdl-c), low- density lipoprotein cholesterol (ldl-c) and acute phase proteins were measured at baseline and after 12 weeks of weight loss regimen in 29 obese women.results: weight, bmi, fasting blood glucose, cholesterol and triglyceride had significant reductions. hdl-c had increased significantly. no significant changes were observed in ldl-c and insulin concentrations. plasma acute phase proteins levels decreased significantly.conclusion: weight loss may represent an important intervention to reduce acute phase protein levels, which may mediate its cardioprotective effects in obese women.