Feb
CRP is an acute phase reactant and there are various levels used in different situations. It was thought that those with herpes created an inflammatory response causing slight elevations picked up by sensitive hsCRP tests thus putting them at increased risk of heart disease. The pathogenesis of heart disease implies an inciting event or infection inducing chronic inflammation. Thus a high CRP especially greater than 3 mg/L is called high within the context of coronary risk assessment.
A high hsCRP greater than 10 mg/l would put the person in terms of classic old fashion CRP testing outside the coronary risk hsCRP testing and into a search for full blown acute inflammatory says.
CRP is classically used in differentiating bacterial infections and viral infections especially in the very high CRP values of greater than 100 mg/L. In intermediate levels of 10-50 mg/L (moderate elevation) there can be overlap of bacterial and viral infections. Influenza A is another example of one that gives a moderate CRP value.
So to answer your question is yes herpes can give a moderate CRP elevation but typically about the 20 mg/L range.
One needs to be careful when attributing the elevated CRP to a viral infection especially within a clinical context of fevers persisting over a week or a person over 50 and in the presence of elevated white counts, vacuolated neutrophils, and elevated sedrate.