Clinical biochemistry
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Clinical biochemistry · Sep 2008
Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies in lung diseases associated with rheumatoid arthritis.
Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide (anti-CCP) antibodies are highly specific markers for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and useful for predicting RA development and progression. However, it has not been fully determined whether anti-CCP antibodies are associated with pulmonary diseases in RA patients. In the present study, we aimed to elucidate the relationships between anti-CCP antibodies and pulmonary diseases, particularly interstitial lung disease (ILD) and bronchiolitis. ⋯ Detection of serum anti-CCP antibodies has no association with pulmonary diseases in RA patients.
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Clinical biochemistry · Sep 2008
B-type natriuretic peptides for the diagnosis of congestive heart failure in dyspneic oldest-old patients.
To evaluate the accuracy of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and amino-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) for the diagnosis of congestive heart failure (CHF) in dyspneic patients aged >or=85 years admitted to the Emergency Department (ED), and to define threshold values in this oldest-old population. ⋯ Both BNP and NT-proBNP could potentially be reliable biomarkers for the diagnosis of CHF in oldest-old patients admitted with acute dyspnea to the ED.