Prognostic Value of N-Terminal Pro–Type-B Natriuretic Peptide and Doppler Left Ventricular Diastolic Variables in Patients With Chronic Systolic Heart Failure Stabilized by Therapy

Prognostication of patients with chronic heart failure (HF) stabilized by therapy may be difficult. Therefore, the aim was to evaluate whether combined assessment of plasma N-terminal pro-B natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) and Doppler left ventricular (LV) diastolic variables was relevant to the prognosis of patients with stable HF. Outpatients with LV systolic HF (ejection fraction ≤45%), classified using clinical criteria as decompensated (n = 94) and stable HF (n = 219), underwent a complete Doppler echocardiographic study. NT-pro-BNP was measured together with mitral wave velocities, E wave deceleration time, and tissue Doppler early septal annular velocity. Median follow-up was 22 months. Freedom from all-cause mortality or HF hospitalization at 24 months was worst (44%) in patients with decompensated HF, intermediate (58%) in patients with stable HF with NT-pro-BNP higher than the median (>1,129 pg/ml), and best (92%) in patients with lower NT-pro-BNP (log-rank p <0.0001). In patients with stable HF, NT-pro-BNP >1,129 pg/ml (hazard ratio [HR] 2.84, p = 0.003), E wave deceleration time <150 ms (HR 2.31, p = 0.004), and tissue Doppler early septal annular velocity <8 cm/s (HR 2.18, p = 0.01) were predictors of the end point at multivariate analysis. The addition of Doppler LV diastolic variables and NT-pro-BNP significantly improved the chi-square test for outcome prediction (from 14.4 to 46.4). In conclusion, NT-pro-BNP and spectral and tissue Doppler variables of LV diastolic dysfunction added independent and incremental contributions to prognostic stratification of patients with stable HF.