High levels of fecal calprotectin and C-reactive protein in patients with colitis

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) with a poor prognosis may be due to persistent colitis. According to the latest guidelines, monitoring has become a part of the treatment process for colitis. Adequate monitoring of the patient's condition is necessary to determine the course of the disease to prevent the worsening of the condition and suppress the subclinical inflammatory process. This analytical study with a cross-sectional design was conducted to evaluate the activity of colitis using the results of C-reactive protein (CRP) and fecal calprotectin (FC) assays. FC levels were analyzed by ELISA, while CRP levels were analyzed using Siemens Flex particle-enhanced turbidimetric immunoassay. In 30 subjects with endoscopy and biopsy of colitis, 16 men and 14 women had a median age of 52.5 (18–70) years. The median FC value increased by 67 (7.3–722 g/g) and was positive (≥50 g/g) in 20 subjects (66.7%), and the mean CRP value was 13.64 mg/L, positive (10–15 mg/L) in 13 subjects (43.33%), and negative (<10 mg/L) in 17 subjects (56.67%). This study demonstrated that FC had a significant relationship with CRP (r=0.57; p<0.001) in patients with colitis. Assessing the levels of FC and CRP among patients with colitis can be useful to assess the worsening of symptoms early and reduce mortality and morbidity.