Objective To investigate the change of N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide ( NT-proBNP) levels in plasma of patients with stable chronic obstructive pulmonary disease ( COPD) at exertion. Methods Pulmonary function testing, increamental and constant cycle ergometer exercise testing were performed in 19 patients with stable COPD and 10 healthy subjects. Arterial blood gas analysis were measured at rest and maximal exertion in incremental testing. Venous blood samples were drawn both at rest and maximal exercise in constant-load exercise testing and NT-proBNP levels were measured. Results NT-proBNP levels did not change significantly during exercise in the patients with stable COPD[ ( 4803. 86 ±1027. 07 ) ng/L vs ( 4572. 39 ±1243. 33 ) ng /L, P = 0. 542 ] and the control group [ ( 4303. 18 ±771. 74) ng/L vs ( 4475. 71 ±1025. 50) ng /L, P = 0. 676] . NT-proBNP levels were not correlated with parameters of cardiopulmonary exercise testing. Conclusion The factors other than cardiac function may contribute to the exercise intolerance in stable COPD patients without heart failure.
Objective To evaluate the value of preoperative B-type natriuretic peptide （BNP） level in predicting new onset atrial fibrillation （AF） in patients after coronary artery bypass grafting （CABG）. Methods We electronically searched PubMed，EMbase，Cochrane library，CNKI and VIP databases from the establishment of those databases to November 2012. Evaluation standard of diagnostic tests was used to identify and screen literatures which investigated correlations between preoperative BNP levels and new onset AF of patients after CABG. Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies （QUADAS） was used to evaluate study quality of included literatures. RevMan 5.0 was used for heterogeneity test. Meta-Disc 1.4 software was used for meta-analysis. Included studies were weighted and then combined. Sensitivity，specificity，diag- nostic odds ratio （DOR），positive likelihood ratio，negative likelihood ratio and corresponding 95% confidence interval（95% CI）were calculated. Summary receiver operating characteristic （SROC） curve was drawn，and the area under the SROC curve （AUC） was analyzed. Results A total of 236 studies were identi?ed，and 5 studies met the eligibility criteria including 802 patients for analysis. There were 228 patients with postoperative new onset AF，and 574 patients without postoperative AF. The quality of the included literature was relatively high. DOR of preoperative elevated BNP level with postoperative new onset AF was 4.15 with 95% CI 2.90 to 5.95. Pooled sensitivity was 0.78 with 95% CI 0.72 to 0.83，pooled specificity was 0.58 with 95% CI 0.54 to 0.58，pooled positive likelihood ratio was 1.91 with 95% CI 1.42 to 1.56，pooled negative likelihood ratio was 0.42 with 95% CI 0.32 to 0.54，and the AUC of SROC was 0.79 （Q=0.72）. Conclusion Preoperative elevated BNP level is significantly correlated with new onset AF after CABG，is a powerful predictor of postoperative AF，and can be used to predict new onset AF after CABG to a certain extent of reliability.
Abstract: Objective To find out the factors which influence plasma N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels and assess whether preoperative plasma NT-proBNP levels can predict postoperative outcomes of cardiac surgery. Methods A total of 120 patients including 83 males and 37 females undergoing various cardiac procedures between December 2008 and May 2009 were included in the study. Their age ranged from 25 to 84 years with an average age of 62.13 years. Through pathological diagnosis, 35 patients had heart valve diseases, 74 had coronary artery diseases, 3 had congenital heart diseases and 8 had aortic aneurysm. NT-proBNP, creatinine, cardiac troponin T (cTnT) and creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB) levels were measured preoperatively and 24 hours after operation. Ventilation time, length of stay in ICU or in hospital, and mortality were closely monitored after operation. The following events were regarded as endpoints: (1) ICU stay timegt;4 d; (2) Ventilation timegt;48 h; (3) Death occurred during the first 30 days after operation. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the prediction function of NTproBNP on endpoint events. Based on the cutoff value, the patients were divided into the NT-proBNP increasing group and nonincreasing group. Univariate and logistic multifactor analysis were adopted to analyze factors which had an influence on preoperative NT-proBNP level. Results NT-proBNP concentration [CM(159mm]increased significantly from 37.5-30 867.0 pg/ml (1 929.12±3 749.44 pg/ml) preoperatively to 177.7-35 000.0pg/ml(2 950.32±4 006.14 pg/ml) 24 hours after operation (t=-2.599, P=0.012). ROC curve demonstrated that a cutoff value above 867 pg/ml preoperatively could predict endpoint events with a sensitivity of 77.8% and a specificity of 62.7%. Ventilation time and length of stay in hospital for the patients in the NT-proBNP increasing group were significantly longer than those of patients in the nonincreasing group (26.44±32.75 h vs. 14.49±9.23 h, t=2.507, P=0.015; 23.70±24.02 d vs. 16.21±8.11 d, t=2.117,P=0.039). Influencing factors on preoperative NTproBNP level included preoperative atrial fibrillation, heart function classification, left ventricular enddiastolic dimension (LVEDD), ejection fraction (EF), pulmonary artery pressure, preoperative creatinine, cTnT and pathological diagnosis. EF (P=0.007) and preoperative atrial fibrillation (P=0.018) were independently associated with preoperative NT-proBNP level. Preoperative NTproBNP was closely related to ventilation time (P=0.015), and length of stay in hospital (P=0.039). Conclusion Preoperative plasma NT-proBNP level presents a high individual variability in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. Ejection fraction and preoperative atrial fibrillation are independently associated with preoperative NT-proBNP level. Preoperative NT-proBNP is a valuable marker in predicting bad outcome in patients undergoing heart surgery.
Objective To investigate the correlation between plasma aminoterminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) level and severity of coronary artery lesions in patients with non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). Methods NSTEMI patients presenting to the Emergency Department and Department of Cardiology from January 2013 to March 2017 were divided into four groups: thrombosis without stenosis, single vessel disease, double vessel diseases, and three vessel diseases. The general situation of the patients, the plasma NT-proBNP, troponin T, echocardiogram and coronary angiography results were analyzed. Results A total of 88 patients were included including 6 in thrombosis without stenosis group, 20 in single vessel disease group, 31 in double vessel diseases group, and 31 in three vessel diseases group. The NT-proBNP level, left ventricular ejection fraction, left ventricular end diastolic diameter, and coronary Gensini score in three vessel diseases group differed much from those in the other groups (P<0.05). The correlation of NT-proBNP with coronary Gensini score in all the patients was positve (t=0.663, P<0.05). Conclusion The level of plasma NT-proBNP in patients with NSTEMI is related to the severity of coronary artery disease.