Changes in clinical biochemical indexes of patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction or patients with hypertensive heart disease before and after treadmill exercise

Background: The incidence of hypertension is continuously increasing. This study aimed to investigate the changes in clinical biochemical indexes of patients with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), or patients with hypertensive heart disease (HHD) before and after treadmill exercise. Methods: Seventy-eight patients with HFpEF and 78 patients with HHD who were admitted to our hospital between February 2020 and February 2021 were selected to take a treadmill exercise test. All patients continued to exercise for 1 month. Clinical biochemical indexes [hemoglobin Alc (HbAlc), low-density lipoprotein (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein (HDL-C), total cholesterol (TC), N-segment pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), and cardiac troponin I (cTnI)] were measured before and after the treadmill exercise test and compared between the two groups. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were drawn to analyze the optimal cutoff values of the clinical biochemical indexes in the diagnosis of HFpEF. The positive diagnostic rates of the biochemical indicators for HFpEF before and after treadmill exercise were compared using the optimal cut-off value of ROC as the positive standard. Results: Before exercise, there was no significant difference in HbAlc, LDL-C, HDL-C, or TC between the two groups (P>0.05), but NT-proBNP and cTnI were significantly higher in the HFpEF group than in the HHD group (P<0.05). ROC curve analysis showed that before exercise, the best cutoff values for plasma NT-proBNP and cTnI in the diagnosis of HFpEF were 2,248.24 pg/mL and 1.14 ng/mL, respectively. After exercise, no significant difference was found in HbAlc, LDL-C, HDL-C, or TC between the two groups (P>0.05). However, the levels of NT-proBNP and cTnI in both groups were higher after exercise, with more significant increases seen in the HFPEF group (P<0.05). The positive rates of plasma NT-proBNP and cTnI in HFpEF group were statistically higher after exercise than before exercise (P<0.05). Conclusions: The changes in plasma NT-proBNP and cTnI in patient after treadmill exercise can be used as sensitive indicators for the diagnosis and differentiation of HFpEF and HHD.