Interpretation of plasma brain natriuretic peptide concentrations may require adjustment for patient's age

BACKGROUND: Brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) is increasingly recognized as a practical, reliable and accurate indicator of left ventricular function and may have an important prognostic role in determining outcome following myocardial infarction and heart failure. METHODS AND RESULTS: We studied a total of 60 patients referred for dobutamine-stress echocardiography to evaluate possible reversible myocardial ischaemia. There was no echocardiographic evidence of structural or functional heart disease in any of the patients included in the study. Blood was sampled for BNP at rest, prior to dobutamine-stress. We found a significant linear correlation between BNP concentrations and patients' age, in the absence of structural or functional heart disease (r(s) = 0.53, 95% CI 0.25-0.73, P<0.0001). CONCLUSION: Our observations suggest the need for consideration of patient's age when interpreting BNP concentrations in the population.