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	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text and any section headings.

We would like to respond to the recent Commentary by Levinson and Elin¹ on the role of high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) measurement and its usefulness as a screening tool for coronary heart disease (CHD). In a well-designed reanalysis of data from a case-control analysis by Ridker et al² of incident CHD in the Women's Health Study, Levinson and Elin point out that the highest quartile of hs-CRP had a positive predictive value (PPV) of only 0.86%. We agree with their assertion that a PPV of 0.86% is inadequate for use in widespread screening, and thus it is possible that hs-CRP may not become widely used for population-based screening for CHD in a similar, healthy population with equally low prevalence of disease.

However, as the authors mention only briefly, it is important to understand the significant influence that disease prevalence has on PPV. Table 1 demonstrates this relationship. The authors obtained . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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