Aim of the work: This prospective study was conducted to evaluate the clinical reliability of N-terminal fragment of proB-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) in identifying patients with cardiotoxicity in the early hours following scorpion sting. Subjects and methods: This study involved 483 children aging between 2–17 years who were admitted to Minia University Poisoning Control Center from 1st January 2010 to 31st December 2019 with a history of scorpion sting, and on clinical evaluation symptoms were manifested. All subjects were clinically examined, investigated for NT-proBNP and CPK-MB on admission, 6 h and 24 h post-envenomation; and subjected to 24 h cardiac monitoring with periodic ECG every 6 h. Results: Assessment of CPK-MB levels showed a significant increase in all moderate to severe cases 6 h post-envenomation. Assessment of NT-proBNP levels showed a significant increase in all moderate to severe cases on admission and 6 h post-envenomation. Moreover, there was a significant decrease in the NT-proBNP level after 24 h compared with that measured on admission. The sensitivity of NT-proBNP for the diagnosis of myocardial injury at hospital admission was significantly higher than that of CPK-MB. Conclusion: NT-proBNP may be a valuable and sensitive laboratory biomarker to predict cardiotoxicity of scorpion sting in the early hours.
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