Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
NT-proBNP blood test helps tell heart failure from breathing disease
By Fox, Philip R et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary cardiology : the official journal of the European Society of Veterinary Cardiology·2009·Caspary Institute, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Utility of plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) to distinguish between congestive heart failure and non-cardiac causes of acute dyspnea in cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 167 cats with breathing problems were tested for a substance called NT-proBNP to see if it could help tell apart those with congestive heart failure (CHF) from those with other respiratory issues. The results showed that cats with CHF had much higher levels of NT-proBNP compared to those with primary respiratory disease. This test was very effective, correctly identifying CHF in 90% of cases. Using NT-proBNP can help veterinarians quickly diagnose heart failure in cats that are struggling to breathe, leading to better treatment options.
People also search for: cat breathing problems · congestive heart failure in cats · NT-proBNP test for cats
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Circulating plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) concentration facilitates emergency diagnosis of congestive heart failure (CHF) in people. Its utility to discriminate between dyspneic cats with CHF vs. primary respiratory disease requires further assessment. Our objectives were to determine if NT-proBNP (1) differentiates dyspneic cats with CHF vs. primary respiratory disease; (2) increases with renal insufficiency; (3) correlates with left atrial dimension, radiographic cardiomegaly, and estimated left ventricular filling pressure (E/E(a)). METHODS: NT-proBNP was measured in 167 dyspneic cats (66 primary respiratory disease, 101 CHF) to evaluate (1) relationship with clinical parameters; (2) ability to distinguish CHF from primary respiratory disease; (3) optimal cut-off values using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. RESULTS: NT-proBNP (1) was higher (median and inter-quartile [25th-75th] percentile) in CHF (754 pmol/L; 437, 1035 pmol/L) vs. primary respiratory disease (76.5 pmol/L; 24, 180 pmol/L) cohorts (P<0.001); (2) positively correlated in CHF cats with increased inter-ventricular septal end-diastolic thickness (rho=0.266; P=0.007) and LV free wall thickness (rho=0.218; P=0.027), but not with radiographic heart size, left atrial size, left ventricular dimensions, E/E(a) ratio, BUN, creatinine, or thyroxine; (3) distinguished dyspneic CHF cats from primary respiratory disease at 265 pmol/L cut-off value with 90.2% sensitivity, 87.9% specificity, 92% positive predictive value, and 85.3% negative predictive value (area under ROC curve, 0.94). CONCLUSIONS: NT-proBNP accurately discriminated CHF from respiratory disease causes of dyspnea.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19394287/