Bertil Andrén

N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide in relation to inflammation, myocardial necrosis, and the effect of an invasive strategy in unstable coronary artery disease.

OBJECTIVES We sought to examine whether measurements of N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), in addition to cardiac troponin T (cTnT) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), improve the ability to identify high-risk patients who benefit from an early invasive strategy. BACKGROUND Biochemical indicators of cardiac performance (e.g., NT-proBNP), inflammation (e.g., IL-6), and myocardial damage (e.g., cTnT) predict mortality in unstable coronary artery disease (UCAD) (i.e., unstable angina or non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction [MI]). In these patients, an early invasive treatment strategy improves the outcome. METHODS Levels of NT-proBNP, cTnT, and IL-6 were measured in 2,019 patients with UCAD randomized to an invasive or non-invasive strategy in the FRagmin and fast revascularization during InStability in Coronary artery disease (FRISC-II) trial. Patients were followed up for two years to determine death and MI. RESULTS Patients in the third NT-proBNP tertile had a 4.1-fold (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.4 to 7.2) and 3.5-fold (95% CI 1.8 to 6.8) increased mortality in the non-invasive and invasive groups, respectively. An increased NT-proBNP level was independently associated with mortality. In patients with increased levels of both NT-proBNP and IL-6, an early invasive strategy reduced mortality by 7.3% (risk ratio 0.46, 95% CI 0.21 to 1.00). In patients with lower NT-proBNP or IL-6 levels, the mortality was not reduced. Only elevated cTnT was independently associated with future MI and a reduction of MI by means of an invasive strategy. CONCLUSIONS N-terminal proBNP is independently associated with mortality. The combination of NT-proBNP and IL-6 seems to be a useful tool in the identification of patients with a definite survival benefit from an early invasive strategy. Only cTnT is independently associated with future MI and a reduction of MI by an invasive strategy.

The majority of nondipping men do not have increased cardiovascular risk: a population-based study.

Objective To investigate whether nondipping and diabetes are independently related to metabolic risk profile and prevalence of target organ damage in a population setting. Methods A population-based cohort of 70-year-old men (n = 1057) was examined with 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp and lipid and glucose determinations. We defined nondipping as a night–day systolic blood pressure ratio ⩾ 1 (n = 66). Urinary albumin excretion rate and echocardiographically determined left ventricular geometry were used as indices of target organ damage. Results Nondipping was not related to hypertension, but diabetes was more common in nondippers (26%) than in dippers (14%, P < 0.05). Nondiabetic nondippers did not differ from dippers regarding insulin sensitivity, plasma glucose or lipids. However, nondipping in diabetic subjects was associated with the most pronounced impairments in body mass index, serum triglycerides and fasting plasma glucose. Measures of target organ damage did not differ between nondippers and dippers in the whole population, but an interaction (P < 0.05) between nondipping and diabetes contributed to an increased left ventricular mass in diabetic nondippers. The urinary albumin excretion rate was independently related to diabetes. Conclusions In this population study, an interaction between diabetes and nondipping was demonstrated regarding fasting plasma glucose, lipid levels and left ventricular mass, indicating that nondipping is a marker of risk in diabetic subjects. However, in the nondiabetic majority of the population, nondipping was not associated with either metabolic disturbances or target organ damage.

The stroke volume/pulse pressure ratio predicts coronary heart disease mortality in a population of elderly men.

Background The stroke volume to pulse pressure ratio (SV/PP), a measure of total arterial compliance, predicts adverse cardiovascular events in hypertensive subjects. The relations to cardiovascular risk factors and its predictive capacity in the general population are not known. Method and results In 1970–73, all 50-year-old men living in Uppsala County, Sweden, were invited to a health survey assessing cardiovascular risk factors. At a reinvestigation 20 years later, 470 subjects underwent an echocardiographic examination, hyperinsulinaemic euglycaemic clamp, oral glucose tolerance test and measurements of blood pressure and lipids. They were thereafter followed for a median of 7.2 years. Serum triglycerides and post-load glucose and insulin levels at age 50 were predictors of SV/PP ratio measured 20 years later (P < 0.05–0.001). At age 70, SV/PP was related to serum non-esterified fatty acids, post-load glucose and insulin levels and insulin sensitivity (P < 0.05–0.001). SV/PP was reduced in subjects with concentric left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH, P < 0.01), and in subjects with a low E-wave to A-wave (E/A) ratio (P < 0.001). The SV/PP ratio predicted mortality from coronary heart disease [hazard ratio 0.54, 95% confidence interval 0.30–0.97 for a one standard deviation (1SD) increase in ln(SV/PP)] independently of left ventricular mass and other major cardiovascular risk factors. Pulse pressure or total peripheral resistance were not significant predictors for future mortality from coronary heart disease. Conclusion The SV/PP ratio was related to main components of the insulin resistance syndrome, concentric LVH and a low E/A ratio. Furthermore, the SV/PP ratio was an independent predictor of mortality from coronary heart disease in a community-based sample of men aged 70.