Systemic inflammation and risk of multiple sclerosis - A presymptomatic case-control study.

Background: C-reactive protein (CRP) is a marker of systemic inflammation. Increased levels of CRP in young persons have been suggested to decrease the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS).
Objectives: To assess CRP as a risk factor for MS.
Methods: Levels of CRP were measured with a high-sensitive immunoassay in biobank samples from 837 individuals who later developed MS and 984 matched controls. The risk of developing MS was analysed by conditional logistic regression on z -scored CRP values.
Results: Levels of CRP were not associated with MS risk.
Conclusions: We found no association between CRP levels and risk of MS development.
Competing Interests: The author(s) declared the following potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article: MB has received a speaker fee from Biogen. JS has received material research support from Synapsys and Interacoustics, and institutional consultancy fees from Mabion S.A. VG, PSt, AL, LAM, OA, DJ, MG, MV, JH and PSu report no disclosures.
(© The Author(s), 2022.)