Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (CCP) antibody is a blood test for Rheumatoid Arthritis. I have used it in hopes it would help with early detection but it seemed to always come back negative.. A recent study suggested it has a 35% sensitivity. However, if it is positive it is near 100% specific.
Pak J Med Sci. 2013 May;29(3):773-7.
Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibody is a good indicator for the diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis.
Abdul Wahab A, Mohammad M, Rahman MM, Mohamed Said MS.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24353626
- Rheumatoid Factor has sensitivity of 21-95% and specificity of 31-95%
- Anti-ccp has sensitivity of 39-94% and specificity of 81-100%
- In this study the only found a sensitvity of 35%
Comment – I continue to see steroid responsive “Fibromylagia”. We still do not have a good early test for RA…