Jornal brasileiro de pneumologia : publicaça̋o oficial da Sociedade Brasileira de Pneumologia e Tisilogia
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Pneumonia is a leading cause of mortality worldwide, especially in the elderly. The use of clinical risk scores to determine prognosis is complex and therefore leads to errors in clinical practice. Pneumonia can cause increases in the levels of cardiac biomarkers such as N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP). The prognostic role of the NT-proBNP level in community acquired pneumonia (CAP) remains unclear. The aim of this study was to evaluate the prognostic role of the NT-proBNP level in patients with CAP, as well as its correlation with clinical risk scores. ⋯ The NT-proBNP level appears to be a good predictor of ICU admission and 30-day mortality among inpatients with CAP, with a predictive value for mortality comparable to that of the PSI and better than that of the CURB-65 score.