Brain-derived natriuretic peptide (BNP) is a cardioprotective peptide released, together with the inactive NH(2)-terminal part of its prohormone (NT-pro-BNP), in response to different kinds of myocardial stress. Hypoglycemia and hypoxemia are conditions that threaten cellular function and hence potentially stimulate BNP release. BNP interacts with the renin-angiotensin system (RAS). The aim of ...

BACKGROUND The N-terminal fragment of pro Brain Natriuretic Peptide (NT-pro BNP) is a neuro-hormone synthesized in the cardiac ventricles in response to increased wall tension. The purpose of this study was to assess the correlation between the NT-pro BNP levels and the New York Heart Association function class (NYHA Fc) of dyspnea and echocardiographic findings for the patients who visited our...

BACKGROUND The data are inconsistent regarding whether extreme N-terminal fragment pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT pro-BNP) levels are associated with impaired renal function. Furthermore, the relationship between extreme NT pro-BNP levels and cardiac and renal function in elderly patients has not been reported. The aim of the present study was to examine a hypothesis that extreme NT pro-BNP...

BACKGROUND  Most patients with surgically corrected tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) are faced with multiple residua and sequelae such as pulmonary regurgitation (PR), resulting in reoperation for pulmonary valve replacement (PVR). Plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) level and serum N-terminal pro-BNP (NT-pro-BNP) level are useful as diagnostic objective markers of chronic heart failure (CHF). The ...

Recent studies support the speculation that different molecular forms of the cardiac hormone BNP with differential biological activity may circulate in heart failure and be detected by conventional assays. In the current study we determined the ability of 3 widely used conventional assays to detect these different forms thought to circulate in heart failure. We also evaluated the ability of pro...

Serum N-terminal pro b-type natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) testing is recommended in the patients with heart failure (HF). We hypothesized that NT-pro-BNP, in combination with other clinical factors in terms of a novel NT-pro BNP-based score, may provide even better predictive power for in-hospital mortality among patients with HF. A retrospective study enrolled adult patients with hospitaliz...

BACKGROUND Natriuretic peptides are released by the heart in response to wall stress. OBJECTIVE The NT-Pro-BNP concentrations in slow coronary flow (SCF) patients were assessed before and after the exercise test and compared with the values of healthy controls. METHODS The study population was 34 patients with SCF [22 males (64.7%), aged 51.0 ± 6.2 years], and 34 normal subjects with normal...

BACKGROUND This study was undertaken to identify factors correlating with plasma levels of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and its N-terminal portion (NTpro BNP) in the acute phase of Kawasaki disease (KD). METHODS This study included 91 patients with KD treated at a hospital affiliated to Hamamatsu University School of Medicine between October 2003 and June 2011. We quantified BNP and NT-pr...

AIMS No studies have yet been conducted concerning plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (Nt-pro-BNP) levels after Myocardial Infarction (MI) and their relationship with short-term outcomes in diabetic patients. METHODS AND RESULTS Five hundred and sixty patients hospitalized for MI from the RICO survey, including 199 diabetic and 361 non-diabetic subjects, were included in the stud...

BACKGROUND The objective of this study was to compare the diagnostic accuracy of pleural fluid brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), N-terminal pro-BNP (NT-pro-BNP) and ST2, which are biomarkers of myocyte stress, for diagnosing pleural effusions due to heart failure (HF). BNP and ST2 have not been previously evaluated in pleural fluid. METHODS The three biomarkers were measured in the pleural flu...