• Benedetta De Berardinis, Laura Magrini, Giorgio Zampini, Benedetta Zancla, Gerardo Salerno, Patrizia Cardelli, Enrico Di Stasio, Hanna K Gaggin, Arianna Belcher, Blair A Parry, John T Nagurney, James L Januzzi, and Salvatore Di Somma.
• Emergency Medicine, Department of Medical-Surgery Sciences and Translational Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Sant'Andrea Hospital, Via di Grottarossa 1035/1039, 00189 Rome, Italy.
• Biomed Res Int. 2014 Jan 1;2014:983098.

IntroductionAcute heart failure (AHF) is associated with a higher risk for the occurrence of rehospitalization and death. Galectin-3 (GAL3) is elevated in AHF patients and is an indicator in predicting short-term mortality. The total body water using bioimpedance vector analysis (BIVA) is able to identify mortality within AHF patients. The aim of this study was to evaluate the short- and long-term predictive value of GAL3, BIVA, and the combination of both in AHF patients in Emergency Department (ED).Methods205 ED patients with AHF were evaluated by testing for B type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and GAL3. The primary endpoint was death and rehospitalization at 30, 60, 90, and 180 days and 12 and 18 months. AHF patients were evaluated at the moment of ED arrival with clinical judgment and GAL3 and BIVA measurement.ResultsGAL3 level was significantly higher in patients >71 years old, and with eGFR < 30 cc/min. The area under the curve (AUC) of GAL3 + BIVA, GAL3 and BIVA for death and rehospitalization both when considered in total and when considered serially for the follow-up period showed that the combination has a better prognostic value. Kaplan-Meier survival curve for GAL3 values >17.8 ng/mL shows significant survival difference. At multivariate Cox regression analysis GAL3 is an independent variable to predict death + rehospitalization with a value of 32.24 ng/mL at 30 days (P < 0.005).ConclusionIn patients admitted for AHF an early assessment of GAL3 and BIVA seems to be useful in identifying patients at high risk for death and rehospitalization at short and long term. Combining the biomarker and the device could be of great utility since they monitor the severity of two pathophysiological different mechanisms: heart fibrosis and fluid overload.

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