How Do Natriuretic Peptides Compare in Patients with Heart Failure?

Correlating NT-proBNP to BNP is difficult, though the two have similar predictive strength.

Natriuretic peptides, either B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) or N-terminal pro-BNP (NT-proBNP), can clarify diagnosis in patients with unexplained dyspnea, assess the impact of evidence-based heart failure (HF) therapy, and inform prognosis in HF. How levels of these two markers correlate is not well established, however, and international guidelines recommend various “conversion factors” to estimate levels of one based on levels of the other. In a reanalysis of the industry-supported PARADIGM-HF trial (NEJM JW Cardiol Oct 2014 and N Engl J Med 2014; 371:993), researchers examined the correlation of contemporaneous BNP and NT-proBNP levels.

The trial, a randomized comparison of sacubitril/valsartan and enalapril, included individuals with H…

Reviewing Author

Frederick A. Masoudi, MD, MSPH, FACC, FAHA

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardBristol Myers Squibb; CPC Clinical Research

Grant/Research SupportNational Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Editorial BoardsUpToDate; American College of Cardiology Self-Assessment Program (SAP)

Leadership Positions in Professional SocietiesAmerican College of Cardiology (Chair, Innovations Committee)