Alveolar membrane conductance decreases as BNP increases during exercise in heart failure. Rationale for BNP in the evaluation of dyspnea.
BACKGROUND
In left ventricular failure (LVF) patients, brain natriuretic peptide (BNP), lung diffusion for carbon monoxide (DLCO), and alveolar-membrane conductance (DM) correlate with LVF severity and prognosis. The reduction of DLCO and DM during exercise reflects pulmonary edema formation.


RESULTS
To evaluate, in LVF patients, the correlation between BNP and lung diffusion parameters at rest and during exercise, we studied 17 severe LVF patients, 13 moderate, and 10 normals measuring BNP and lung diffusion parameters before, at the end, and 1 hour after a 10-minute high-intensity constant-workload exercise. At rest, a significant correlation exists between BNP and lung diffusion parameters. Resting BNP, DLCO, and DM correlate with peak oxygen consumption (P < .0001 for all analyses). With exercise, BNP increase is significant (severe LVF 180 +/- 49 pg/mL, moderate 68 +/- 58, normals 18 +/- 12); differently, only in severe LVF, with exercise, DLCO (-1.1 +/- 0.7 mL/mm Hg/min, P < .0001) and DM (-6.4 +/- 2.8, P < .0006) decrease. One hour after exercise, only in severe LVF, BNP is still higher than at rest, while DLCO, DM, and DM/Vc are lower. Significant correlations are observed between BNP and DM changes during exercise and recovery (P < .0001) in severe LVF.


CONCLUSIONS
In severe LVF, BNP changes during exercise correlate with simultaneous reductions in DM, suggesting that BNP increase and pulmonary edema formation could be related.
Cattadori
Gaia
G
Centro Cardiologico Monzino, IRCCS, Istituto di Cardiologia, Università di Milano, Milan, Italy. gaia.cattadori@ccfm.it
Wasserman
Karlman
K
Meloni
Chiara
C
Mustaq
Saima
S
Contini
Mauro
M
Apostolo
Anna
A
Andreini
Daniele
D
Magrì
Damiano
D
Sciomer
Susanna
S
Veglia
Fabrizio
F
Berna
Giovanni
G
Introcaso
Giovanni
G
Palermo
Pietro
P
Fiorentini
Cesare
C
Agostoni
Piergiuseppe
P
D000368:Aged; D001642:Bicycling; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D001784:Blood Gas Analysis; D004418:Dyspnea, Paroxysmal / Q000097:blood* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D017079:Exercise Tolerance; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain / Q000097:blood*; D010101:Oxygen Consumption; D011379:Prognosis; D011659:Pulmonary Gas Exchange; D012123:Pulmonary Ventilation; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013318:Stroke Volume; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left
D015415:Biomarkers; D020097:Natriuretic Peptide, Brain