title: Neopterin as a prognostic marker in patients with chronic heart failure.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The study aimed at evaluating neopterin concentration in relation to heart failure etiology and determining basal neopterin concentration in relation to the clinical state of patients after 12 months of standard treatment.
  
  
  METHODS
  The examined group was composed of 47 patients with NYHA class II and III heart failure and 20 healthy volunteers. Neopterin concentration in blood serum was determined with a radioimmunological assay. Twelve months after the patients had left the hospital, their quality of life and clinical symptoms of heart failure were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Statistically significantly higher basal concentrations of neopterin in the group of patients with CHF than in the control group (p<0.001) were noted. A higher concentration was found in NYHA class III than in NYHA class II CHF patients (p<0.001). No difference in relation to heart failure etiology was detected. The basal neopterin concentration determined patients' clinical status after the 12-month standard chronic heart failure treatment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In the 12-month observation, a relationship was detected between neopterin concentration and heart failure progression, which may point to neopterin as a marker of heart failure progression.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Pharmacology, Karol Marcinkowski University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland.
authors.forename: Irmina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Wietlicka-Kokoszanek
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jablecka
authors.forename: Iwona
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Smolarek
authors.forename: Pawel
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bogdanski
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Chmara
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Korzeniowska
authors.forename: Mirosław
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kazmierczak
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kazmierczak
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Musialik
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D005260:Female; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000097:blood*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019798:Neopterin / Q000097:blood*; D011379:Prognosis
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D019798:Neopterin