Why the study?
Does screening with BNP and ECG accurately identify pre-clinical ventricular dysfunction in patients over 40 with cardiovascular risk factors?
Population
814 patients over 40 years of age with at least one cardiovascular risk factor
Comparison
Screening with brain natriuretic peptide alone… vs Doppler echocardiography (reference standard)
Design
Cross-sectional
Authors
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Supports combined BNP-ECG screening in at-risk patients over 40; leaves open prospective validation of clinical outcomes.
Does screening with BNP and ECG accurately identify pre-clinical ventricular dysfunction in patients over 40 with cardiovascular risk factors?
Many false-positive BNP screens for LVSD are actually due to LVDD, and combining BNP (50 pg/mL cut-off) with ECG provides optimal screening for pre-clinical ventricular dysfunction.
Murtagh et al. (2012) studied this question.
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