Correlation of NT-proBNP with diastolic left ventricular function in elderly patients with ischemic stroke

We tested the hypothesis that, in elderly survivors of ischemic stroke, high NT-proBNP levels are related with frequent diastolic dysfunction. We prospectively measured NT-proBNP, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and echographic parameters of diastolic function in 55 elderly consecutive patients, 6.8 +/- 2.6 days after acute ischemic stroke. We found that all the patients had systolic or diastolic dysfunction (14 had LVEF<50%, 26 mild diastolic dysfunction+LVEF >= 50%, and 15 moderate or severe diastolic dysfunction+LVEF >= 50%). The most powerful predictors of NT-proBNP were LVEF (R=0.38, p=0.004) and ratio of mitral E to the early diastolic velocity of the mitral annulus: E/E'(R=0.34, p=0.01). (C) 2008 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.