title: Diagnostic and prognostic usefulness of natriuretic peptides in emergency department patients with dyspnea.
abstract: More than 4.5 million Americans have congestive heart failure (CHF), close to 550,000 new cases are diagnosed each year, and one third of known patients with CHF are annually admitted to the hospital. Emergency department diagnosis of CHF is often based on history and physical examination findings along with results of ancillary tests, such as chest radiography and ECG. Although signs and symptoms of fluid overload, such as lower extremity edema and dyspnea, raise the suspicion of CHF, their lack of sensitivity makes them poor screening tools. The natriuretic peptides are promising markers of myocardial dysfunction and heart failure. Because of their relationship to myocardial pressure and stretching, natriuretic peptides have been investigated over the past 5 decades as both diagnostic and prognostic markers in acute coronary syndromes and CHF. This article discusses each of the natriuretic peptides and attempts to delineate their potential diagnostic and prognostic roles in the ED.
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA. sean.collins@uc.edu
authors.forename: Sean P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Collins
authors.forename: Sarah
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ronan-Bentle
authors.forename: Alan B
authors.initials: AB
authors.lastname: Storrow
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D009320:Atrial Natriuretic Factor / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood / Q000737:chemistry; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D004417:Dyspnea / Q000209:etiology*; D004638:Emergency Treatment / Q000379:methods* / Q000592:standards; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards; D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D020098:Natriuretic Peptide, C-Type / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D010343:Patient Admission / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D010446:Peptide Fragments / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D011379:Prognosis; D011498:Protein Precursors / Q000097:blood* / Q000737:chemistry; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013318:Stroke Volume; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C099254:N-terminal proatrial natriuretic peptide; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D010446:Peptide Fragments; D011498:Protein Precursors; C109794:pro-brain natriuretic peptide (1-76); D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain; D020098:Natriuretic Peptide, C-Type; D009320:Atrial Natriuretic Factor