Relevance of plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide(NT-proBNP)level and cardiac function in elderly patients with chronic heart failure

Objective To investigate the relevance of plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide(NT-proBNP)level and cardiac function in elderly patients with chronic heart failure(CHF).Methods 101 elderly patients with CHF and 72 patients with normal cardiac function as control were collected from Jan.2007 to Jun.2012.The heart function of all patients was graded by New York Heart Association(NYHA) classification.Serum NT-proBNP level was assayed by electrochemiluminescence double antibody sandwich immunoassay.Left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF) was detected by color Doppler ultrasound.Results Significant differences in NT-proBNP level,LVEF and LVEDd were found between CHF patients and healthy controls,and among the CHF patients with different NYHA class(All P0.01).NT-proBNP level was negatively correlated with LVEF(r=0.783,P0.01),and positively correlated with LVEDd(r=0.801,P0.01).Conclusion The measurement of NT-proBNP may have certain clinical significance for the diagnosis and judgment of cardiac function for elderly CHF patients.