The American journal of cardiology
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N-terminal-pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) is well established as a predictor of prognosis in patients with left ventricular dysfunction. Although a similar prognostic significance has been suggested in 1 study of right ventricular failure and idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension, NT-pro-BNP has not been assessed as a marker of disease severity in a more heterogenous group of patients with chronic precapillary pulmonary hypertension (PH). Hence, this study assessed plasma NT-pro-BNP and other clinical variables in 61 consecutively recruited patients with various forms of chronic precapillary PH. ⋯ Baseline NT-pro-BNP was an independent predictor of mortality. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis according to the median value of NT-pro-BNP (168 pmol/L) demonstrated a significantly higher mortality rate in those with supramedian values than in those with low plasma levels (p = 0.010). In conclusion, these findings suggest that in a heterogenous group of patients with chronic precapillary PH, plasma NT-pro-BNP can be used to determine the clinical severity of disease and is independently associated with long-term mortality.
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Comment Letter
Effects of thrombolysis in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
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Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Usefulness of intermediate amino-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide concentrations for diagnosis and prognosis of acute heart failure.
Age-stratified cutpoints for aminoterminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) concentrations are diagnostic in 83% of all subjects with acute dyspnea. This study analyzed subjects with NT-pro-BNP concentrations between the "rule-out" and "rule-in" cutpoints, the so-called natriuretic peptide gray zone. NT-pro-BNP concentrations, clinical characteristics, and 60-day mortality were studied in 1,256 acutely dyspneic patients from an international multicenter study. ⋯ Subjects with HF and diagnostically elevated NT-pro-BNP concentrations had the highest mortality rates, subjects without HF and NT-pro-BNP concentrations < 300 ng/L had the lowest mortality rates, and subjects with gray-zone NT-pro-BNP had intermediate outcomes, irrespective of their final diagnoses. Adding specific clinical information to NT-pro-BNP improves diagnostic accuracy in subjects with intermediate NT-pro-BNP concentrations. Mortality rates in subjects with intermediate NT-pro-BNP concentrations are lower than in those with NT-pro-BNP concentrations diagnostic for HF but are higher than in subjects with NT-pro-BNP concentrations less than the gray zone.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Comparative early and late outcomes after primary percutaneous coronary intervention in ST-segment elevation and non-ST-segment elevation acute myocardial infarction (from the CADILLAC trial).
We determined the outcomes of patients with acute ST-segment elevation (STE) myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-STEMI (NSTEMI) after primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The prognosis after primary PCI in STEMI has been extensively studied and defined. Outcomes of patients who undergo primary PCI for NSTEMI are less well established. ⋯ At 1 year, patients with NTEMI had similar mortality (3.4% vs 4.4%, p = 0.40) but higher rates of major adverse cardiac events (24.0% vs 16.6%, p = 0.007) that was driven by more frequent ischemic target vessel revascularization (21.8% vs 11.9%, p <0.0001). In conclusion, patients with acute MI without STE who are treated with primary PCI have marked delays to treatment, similar late mortality, and increased rates of ischemic target vessel revascularization compared with patients with STEMI, despite more favorable angiographic features at presentation and similar reperfusion success. The adverse prognosis of patients with NSTEMI should be recognized and efforts made to decrease reperfusion times.
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Comment Letter Comparative Study
Effects of thrombolysis during out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation.