ABSTRACT
The recent discovery of cardiac endocrine function, together with the development of accurate and feasible assay methods for cardiac natriuretic hormone evaluation, i.e. for B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and inactive peptide NT-proBNP have confirmed their pathophysiological and clinical significance for cardiovascular disease assessment. Concerning heart failure, their value is for diagnostic screening in selected/unselected populations, for differential diagnosis of dyspnea and for prognostic stratification, and as a guide for follow-up and treatment of patients. Recent Italian recommendations pointed out that BNP/NT-proBNP has a role in ruling-out the diagnosis of heart failure in patients with dubious signs/symptoms: plasma BNP/NT-proBNP concentrations help in the clinical evaluation of chronic heart failure patients when risk stratification is needed, whereas the routine BNP/NT-proBNP assay is still not recommended to guide therapeutic decision-making.
