Levels and significance of brain natriuretic peptide in patients with stable angina pectoris and acute coronary syndrome

Objective To explore the variation of brain natriuretic peptide and in patients with stable angina pectoris (SAP) and acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Methods Plasma BNP in 64 ACS patients , 15 SAP patients and 22 healthy controls with normal coronary artery angiogram (CAG) and cardiac function(control group) was tested by fluoroimmunoassay. ACS patients were divided into unstable angina pectoris (UAP) group and myocardial infarction (MI) group. Results The plasma BNP level in ACS group was significantly higher than that in SAP group and control group (P0.005, P0.005 respectively).The same was true when the level of BNP in MI group and UAP group was compared to that in SAP group and control group seperately (P0.005, P0.005 and P0.005, P0.01 respectively).The plasma BNP level in MI group was significantly higher than that in UAP group. But there was no significant difference between SAP group and control group (P0.05). Conclusion Plasma BNP level increased significantly in patients with ACS. It seems more prominent in patients with MI. Ischemia is an important stimulus for BNP release.