Plasma brain natriuretic peptide concentrations in patients with Kawasaki disease

Abstract

It was shown that the plasma BNP concentration increased in the acute phase of KD and decreased to within normal range in the convalescent phase. Further examinations are needed to clarify the mechanism by which the elevated levels of plasma BNP occur in the acute phase of KD. However, plasma BNP might be a useful biological marker of the cardiovascular manifestations in patients with KD.

N-terminal pro-B–type natriuretic peptide levels in acute versus chronic left ventricular dysfunction

“…Animal studies have found elevated gene expression of the natriuretic peptides in the myocardium in experimental myocarditis. 15 In children, Kawamura et al 16 found higher BNP levels in patients with acute Kawasaki disease than in patients with viral infections. To the best of our knowledge, to date no study has assessed NT-proBNP levels in children with acute LVD, and no study has compared levels of BNP or NT-proBNP in groups of patients with chronic LVD and acute LVD.…”

N-Terminal Pro-Brain Natriuretic Peptide as a Useful Diagnostic Marker of Acute Kawasaki Disease in Children

“…Kawamura et al hypothesized that 2 possibilities may account for the elevation in BNP level. 14 One mechanism for this increase may be a result of local myocardial inflammation or areas of ischemia. Another mechanism may involve cytokines.…”

Predictive risk factors for coronary artery abnormalities in Kawasaki disease

“…C-reactive protein (CRP) was significantly higher in the CAA group, suggesting that more severe inflammation during the acute phase results in more coronary complications later despite therapy (p=0.038). Interestingly, the baseline level of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP), a useful biological marker of the acute cardiovascular manifestations in patients with KD [9,11], did not differ significantly, indicating that the development of CAA does not depend on the degree of acute cardiac involvement, at least as reflected by baseline BNP levels ( Table 1). Duration of fever was an important predictive factor for CAA in many previous studies, and in this study the CAA group had a longer total duration of fever (8.5±3.4 days for CAA(+) vs. 6.8±2.1 days for CAA(−), p=0.002).…”