scholarly journals Diagnostic and prognostic significance of alpha-defensin in patients with chronic heart failure during 2-year follow-up

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanna Banach ◽  
Łukasz Wołowiec ◽  
Daniel Rogowicz ◽  
Wojciech Gilewski ◽  
Katarzyna Buszko ◽  
...  

BackgroundDefensins play an important role in the processes associated with innate immunity. Their growth is observed in sites of intense inflammation, but also in less severe inflammation. Evaluation of alpha-defensin levels in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) and its possible association with a long-term prognosis may be an interesting supplement to knowledge about the state of the immune system in heart failure.The aim of the study was to compare the plasma concentration of alpha-defensin between the patients with chronic heart failure with impaired ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) <45% and the control group, as well as to evaluate the prognostic value of alpha-defensin as a possible predictor of death during a 24-month observation period.Methods The study included 52 hospitalized patients with a primary diagnosis of CHF and LVEF <45%. 20 patients exhibited features of CHF exacerbation, the remaining 32 were hospitalized on schedule. The control group consisted of 28 healthy volunteers. The observation was conducted by telephone for 2 years. The end point of the study was death for all reasons.Results Patients with CHF had significantly higher levels of alpha-defensin than control subjects. Similarly, plasma hs-CRP levels were significantly higher in the study group than in the control group, although in both groups the median hs-CRP did not exceed 5 mg / L. It has not been shown that exacerbation has an effect on alpha-defensin concentration. During the two-year follow-up, statistically significant effects on the endpoint of the following parameters were observed: EF (p = 0.035, HR = 0.917), hs-CRP (p = 0.036; HR = 1.046) and NT-proBNP (p < 0.001, HR = 1.000078). ROC analysis showed that during both a 12-month (AUC = 0.333, p = 0.116) as well as a 24 month (AUC = 0.447, p = 0.616) observation period plasma concentration of alpha-defensin was not a good predictor of death in CHF patients.ConclusionsHigher levels of alpha-defensin in patients with CHF confirm subclinical inflammatory activation in this population. However, this marker does not have predictive value for predicting death in the medium-term observation.

Circulation ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 116 (suppl_16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcus Sandri ◽  
Stephan Gielen ◽  
Norman Mangner ◽  
Volker Adams ◽  
Sandra Erbs ◽  
...  

Background: The concept of ventricular-arterial coupling implies that LV-function is determined by the three factors left ventricular diastolic, left ventricular systolic and arterial elastance. We have previously documented an improvement in endothelial function and systolic LV-function in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF) after 6 months of exercise training (ET). It remains, however, unclear, how shorter ET periods may affect endothelial, systolic and diastolic ventricular function as echocardiographic parameters related to ventricular arterial coupling in patients with CHF. METHODS: In this ongoing study we randomised 43 patients with stable CHF (age 60.3 ± 2.9 years, EF 27.4 ± 1.7%, VO 2 max 14.7 ± 4.3ml/kg*min) to a training or a control group (C). Patients in the training group exercised 4 times daily at 70% of the individual heart rate reserve for 4 weeks under supervision. At baseline and after 4 weeks the E/A ratio and septal/lateral E’/A’ velocities were determined by echocardiography with tissue Doppler. Exercise capacity was measured by ergospirometry and flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) was assessed by high-resolution radial ultrasound. RESULTS: After only 4 weeks of ET oxygen uptake at peak exercise increased from 14.9 ± 3.3 to 18.1 ± 4.7 ml/min/kg, (p<0.01 vs. C) in training subjects. Left ventricular ejection fraction improved from 26.8 ± 4.6 to 33.1 ± 5.5% (p<0.05 vs. C) in patients of the training group while it remained unchanged in the control group. E/A-ratio mended from 0.63 ± 0.12 to 0.81 ± 0.22 (p<0.01 vs. C) in training patients. Septal E’ velocities increased from 5.5 ± 0.5 to 7.8 ± 1.4 cm/s in training patients (p<0.05 vs. C). FMD of the radial artery improved from 8.2 ± 2.1 to 15.2 ± 3.8% (p<0.01 vs. C) as a result of ET. CONCLUSIONS: Only 4 weeks of endurance training are highly effective with significantly improved FMD accompanied by an emended systolic and diastolic LV-function. We hypothesise that the improvement in LV-EF in training patients may be caused by a corrected ventricular-arterial coupling: ventricular diastolic relaxation and effective endothelial function are ameliorated resulting in an augmentation of stroke volume.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 41-47
Author(s):  
E. A. Polunina ◽  
L. P. Voronina ◽  
E. A. Popov ◽  
I. S. Belyakova ◽  
O. S. Polunina ◽  
...  

Aim. To develop a mathematical equation (algorithm) to predict the development of chronic heart failure (CHF) for three years, depending on the clinical phenotype.Material and methods. Three hundred forty five patients with CHF with a different left ventricular ejection fraction (preserved, mean, low) were examined. The control group included somatically healthy individuals (n=60). In all patients, 48 parameters that most widely characterize the pathogenesis of CHF (gender-anamnestic, clinical, instrumental, biochemical) were analyzed. To isolate phenotypes, dispersive and cluster analysis was used: the hierarchical classification method and the k-means method. In the development of algorithms we used binary logistic regression method. We used ROC curve to assess the quality of the obtained algorithms.Results. We identified four phenotypes in patients with CHF: fibro-rigid, fibro-inflammatory, inflammatory-destructive, dilated-maladaptive. For the first three phenotypes, a mathematical logistic regression method was used to develop mathematical models for predicting the progression of CHF for three years, with the release of predictors for each phenotype. Belonging to the dilatedmaladaptive phenotype according to the results of the analysis is already an indicator of an unfavorable prognosis in patients with CHF.Conclusion. The developed algorithms based on the selected phenotypes have high diagnostic sensitivity and specificity and can be recommended for use in clinical practice.


The Clinician ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-42
Author(s):  
E. S. Trofimov ◽  
A. S. Poskrebysheva ◽  
N. А. Shostak

Objective: to evaluate vasopressin (VP) concentration in patients with varying severity of chronic heart failure (CHF), intensity of clinical symptoms, and decreased level of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Materials and methods. In total, 120 patients (44 males, 76 females) with CHF of varying genesis (mean age 72.12 ± 10.18 years) and 30 clinically healthy individuals (18 males, 12 females) as a control group (mean age 33.4 ± 6.23 years) were examined. All patients underwent comprehensive clinical and instrumental examination in accordance with the standards for patients with CHF. The VP level was determined using ELISA. Statistical analysis was performed using the IBM SPSS Statistics v. 23 software.Results. The patients with CHF had significantly higher blood VP levels compared to the control group (72.91 ± 53.9 pg/ml versus 6.6 ± 3.2 pg/ml respectively; p <0.01). At the same time, patients with stage III CHF had significantly lower VP levels than patients with stages IIВ and IIА (35.61 ± 21.53 pg/ml versus 71.67 ± 48.31 pg/ml and 86.73 ± 59.78 pg/ml respectively; p<0.01). A similar picture was observed for the functional classes (FC). For instance, for CHF FC II and III, the VP level was 91.93 ± 67.13 pg/ml and 77.95 ± 54.01 pg/ml respectively, while for FC IV it decreased to 50.49 ± 28.18 pg/ml (p <0.01). The VP concentration in patients who subsequently perished was significantly lower than in patients who survived (48.79 ± 26.30 pg/ml versus 79.72 ± 57.73 pg/ml; p = 0.012). Moreover, in patients with LVEF <50 %, the VP level was significantly lower than in patients with LVEF >50 % (59.43 ± 42.51 pg/ml versus 86.43 ± 62.46 pg/ml respectively; p <0.05).Conclusion. The observed significant differences in VP in patients with stage III and IV CFH can indicate depletion of neurohumoral mediators in this patient category. However, a correlation between the VP level and the level of LVEF decrease can indicate a significant difference in the role of VP in CHF pathogenesis in patients with preserved and decreased LVEF. This observation requires further research.


Author(s):  
Hanaa Shafiek ◽  
Andres Grau ◽  
Jaume Pons ◽  
Pere Pericas ◽  
Xavier Rossello ◽  
...  

Background: Cardiopulmonary exercise test (CPET) is a crucial tool for the functional evaluation of cardiac patients. We hypothesized that VO2 max and VE/VCO2 slope are not the only parameters of CPET able to predict major cardiac events (mortality or cardiac transplantation urgently or elective). Objectives: We aimed to identify the best CPET predictors of major cardiac events in patients with severe chronic heart failure and to propose an integrated score that could be applied for their prognostic evaluation. Methods: We evaluated 140 patients with chronic heart failure who underwent CPET between 2011 and 2019. Major cardiac events were evaluated during follow-up. Univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis were applied to study the predictive value of different clinical, echocardiographic and CPET parameters in relation to the major cardiac events. A score was generated and c-statistic was used for the comparisons. Results: Thirty-nine patients (27.9%) died or underwent cardiac transplantation over a median follow-up of 48 months. Five parameters (maximal workload, breathing reserve, left ventricular ejection fraction, diastolic dysfunction and non-idiopathic cardiomyopathy) were used to generate a risk score that had better risk discrimination than NYHA dyspnea scale, VO2 max, VE/VCO2 slope > 35 alone, and combined VO2 max and VE/VCO2 slope (p= 0.009, 0.004, < 0.001 and 0.005 respectively) in predicting major cardiac events. Conclusions: A composite score of CPET and clinical/echocardiographic data is more reliable than the single use of VO2max or combined with VE/VCO2 slope to predict major cardiac events.


2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 12-17
Author(s):  
Mehmet Küçükosmanoğlu ◽  
Cihan Örem

Introduction: MPI is an echocardiographic parameter that exibit the left ventricular functions globally. NT-proBNP  is an important both diagnostic and prognostic factor in heart failure. In this study, we aimed to investigate the prognostic significance of serum NT-proBNP levels and MPI in patients with STEMI. Method: Totally 104 patients with a diagnosis of STEMI were included in the study. Patients followed for 30-days and questioned for presence of symptoms of heart failure (HF) and cardiac death. Patients were invited for outpatient control after 30-days and were divided into two groups: (HF (+) group) and (HF (-) group). Results: Totally 104 patients with STEMI were hospitalized in the coronary intensive care unit. Of those patients, 17 were female (16%), 87 were male (84%), and the mean age of the patients was 58.9±10.8 years. During the 30-day follow-up, 28 (27%) of 104 patients developed HF. The mean age, hypertension ratio and anterior STEMI rate were significantly higher in the HF (+) group compared to the HF (-) group. Ejection time (ET) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) were significantly lower and MPI was significantly higher in the HF (+) group. When the values on day first and  sixth were compared, NT-ProBNP levels were decreased in both groups. There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of the change in MPI values on the first and sixth days. Multiple regression analysis showed that the presence of anterior MI, first day NT-proBNP level and LVEF were independently associated with development of HF and death. Conclusion: In our study, NT-proBNP levels were found to be positively associated with MPI in patients with acute STEMI. It was concluded that the level of NT-proBNP detected especially on the 1st day was more valuable than MPI in determining HF development and prognosis after STEMI.  


2021 ◽  
Vol 23 (Supplement_G) ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura De Michieli ◽  
Manuel De Lazzari ◽  
Giorgio Porcelli ◽  
Alberto Cipriani ◽  
Matteo Dalla Libera ◽  
...  

Abstract Aims Pulmonary hypertension (PH) carries a poor prognosis in patients with non-ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy (NIDC). Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) evaluation can identify myocardial abnormalities. In particular, junctional LGE is already an established marker of adverse right ventricular (RV) remodelling in patients with pre-capillary PH. This study sought to assess the prevalence of junctional LGE by CMR in NIDC, its relationship with hemodynamic parameters and, moreover, its prognostic significance. Methods and results Patients with NIDC who underwent right heart catheterization (RHC) and CMR within 3 months in a tertiary hospital were enrolled. Patients with acute heart failure were excluded. Among others, RV and left ventricular (LV) volumes, junctional LGE at CMR, pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure (PCWP) at RHC were tabulated. Pulmonary hypertension was defined accordingly to current Guidelines (median PAP at RHC ≥ 25 mmHg). The primary endpoint consisted of heart failure (HF) hospitalization during follow-up. A total of 188 patients [median age 49 (SD 15), 71% males] were evaluated. At morpho-functional CMR evaluation, most subjects (76%) had important systolic dysfunction (LV EF ≤ 35%). Junctional LGE was observed in 83 (44%) patients. Among patients with junctional LGE, 21 had LGE confined only to the junctional region, while 61 had also mid-wall interventricular septal stria and 21 a mid-wall stria in the lateral free LV wall. Patients with junctional LGE had lower RV EF (49% vs. 56%, P &lt; 0.001) and LV EF (27% vs. 30%, P = 0.012) when compared to those without junctional LGE although no differences in LV and RV dimensions were found. RHC showed PH in 83 patients (44%). Patients with junctional LGE showed a worse hemodynamic profile in terms of PH (55% vs. 36%; P = 0.011) and increase in PCWP (PCWP &gt; 15 mmHg in 60% vs. 42%; P = 0.015) compared to subjects without junctional LGE. Among 79 patients with PH and PCWP &gt; 15 mmHg, 75 (95%) had a combined post capillary and pre-capillary PH (diastolic pressure gradient ≥7 mmHg). Univariate analysis showed that junctional LGE was associated with a worse hemodynamic profile; on multivariable model, RV EF was significantly associated with the presence of junctional LGE (OR: 0.91; 95% CI: 0.87–0.96, P &lt; 0.001). During a median follow-up of 58 months, 33 patients (18%) died or underwent heart transplantation/ventricular assist device implantation, 17% in the junctional LGE group vs. 18% among those without junctional LGE. Thirty-eight patients (20%) had at least one episode of HF, 22 among junctional LGE group and 16 in control group (27% vs. 15%, P = 0.056). When adjusted for age, junctional LGE resulted a significant determinant of HF hospitalization (OR: 2.13, 95% CI: 1.02–4.44, P = 0.044). Conclusions Junctional LGE is detectable in almost half of NIDC patients and it is related to a worse haemodynamic profile, characterized by PH and elevated PCWP. Moreover, after adjustment for age, it was a significant determinant of HF hospitalization during follow-up in our population. Junctional LGE can therefore represent a useful prognostic tool, as marker of adverse ventricular remodelling likely related to ventricular interdependence.


2019 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 81-89
Author(s):  
E. I. Myasoedova

Objective. To identify and evaluate the relationship between the level of proadrenomedullin and clinical and anamnestic data of patients with chronic heart failure of ischemic genesis.Materials and methods. 240 men with chronic forms of coronary heart disease (mean age 55.9 [43; 63] years) and past Q-forming myocardial infarction were examined. Of these, 110 patients had chronic heart failure and preserved left ventricular ejection fraction (group 1) and 130 patients had chronic heart failure and dilatation with a low left ventricular ejection fraction (group 2). In all patients the MR-proADM level in the blood serum was determined.Results. In the control group, the level of MR-proADM was 0.49 [0.18; 0.58] nmol /l. In the meantime, it was statistically significantly higher in the studied groups of patients than in the control group (p < 0.001 and p < 0.001, respectively). And in the group of patients with chronic heart failure and dilatation with a low left ventricular ejection fraction, it was statistically significantly higher than in the group of patients with chronic heart failure and preserved left ventricular ejection fraction (1.72 [1.56; 1.98] nmol/l and 0.89 [0.51; 1.35] nmol/l, respectively, p < 0.038). The study demonstrated the presence of statistically significant associations between the level of MR-proADM and the severity of chronic heart failure and exertional angina pectoris as well as between the presence of a constant form of atrial fibrillation and the levels of systolic and diastolic blood pressure.Conclusion. MR-proADM is a new promising marker, which will be possible to use as a diagnostic standard for assessing the effectiveness of treatment of cardiac patients. 


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