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Predictive value of plasma galectin-3 in patients with chronic heart failure
1Department of Cardiology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital Affiliated Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China. wchqian12@hotmail.com
Insights
Plasma galectin-3 levels predict chronic heart failure (CHF) by correlating with left ventricular changes. While less sensitive than NT-proBNP, galectin-3 shows higher specificity in predicting CHF.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Biomarkers
- Heart Failure Research
Background:
- Chronic heart failure (CHF) poses a significant health burden.
- Identifying reliable biomarkers for CHF prediction and management is crucial.
- Galectin-3 is a potential biomarker implicated in cardiac remodeling.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the predictive value of plasma galectin-3 in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).
- To assess the relationship between galectin-3 levels and cardiac structural/functional changes in CHF.
- To compare the prognostic performance of galectin-3 with NT-proBNP in CHF.
Main Methods:
- Recruited patients with CHF (NYHA class II-IV) due to coronary heart disease.
- Measured plasma galectin-3 and NT-proBNP using ELISA.
- Utilized echocardiography to assess left atrial diameter, left ventricular end-diastolic diameter, and ejection fraction.
- Employed ROC curve analysis to determine prognostic value.
Main Results:
- Plasma galectin-3 levels were elevated in higher NYHA classes and correlated with adverse left ventricular remodeling (increased LAD, LVEDD; decreased LVEF).
- Galectin-3 demonstrated high specificity (90%) but moderate sensitivity (62.9%) for predicting CHF (AUC=0.798).
- NT-proBNP showed higher sensitivity (92.8%) but lower specificity (85%) (AUC=0.901).
Conclusions:
- Plasma galectin-3 levels are associated with left ventricular structural and functional alterations in CHF.
- Galectin-3 may play a role in the left ventricular remodeling process in CHF.
- Galectin-3 offers high specificity for CHF prediction, complementing NT-proBNP's sensitivity.
Aim:
To study the predictive value of plasma galectin-3 in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF).
Materials And Methods:
Patients with CHF (New York Heart Association functional class II-IV) caused by coronary heart disease were recruited. The levels of plasma galectin-3 and NT-proBNP were measured by enzyme-linked immuno sorbent assay. Echocardiography was performed to determine the diastolic left atrial diameter (LAD), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (LVEDD) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Receiver-operating characteristic (ROC) curve was used to analyze the prognostic value of galectin-3 or NT-proBNP for CHF.
Results:
The level of galectin-3 was significantly higher in NYHA functional class III and IV compared with that in control (p < 0.05 and p < 0.01, respectively). The level of plasma galectin-3 was positively correlated with LAD (r = 0.271, p < 0.05) and LVEDD (r = 0.480, p < 0.01), but negatively correlated with LVEF (r = -0.683, p < 0.01). The level of plasma NT-proBNP was positively correlated with LAD (r = 0.481, p < 0.01) and LVEDD (r = 0.270, p < 0.05), but negatively correlated with LVEF (r = -0.516, p < 0.01). AUC was 0.798 when the level of plasma galectin-3 was more than 7.52 ng/ml. The sensitivity to predict CHF was 62.9%, and the specificity was 90%. AUC was 0.901 when the level of plasma NT-proBNP was more than 1143 pg/ml. The sensitivity to predict CHF was 92.8% and the specificity was 85%.
Conclusions:
The level of plasma galectin-3 is related to the changes of left ventricular structure and function, indicating that galectin-3 may have been involved in the process of left ventricular remodeling in CHF. The specificity of galectin-3 to predict CHF is higher than NT-proBNP, but not the sensitivity.
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