Association between Serum N-Terminal Pro-Brain Natriuretic Peptide Concentration and Left Ventricular Dysfunction and Extracellular Water in Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis Patients

Background This study investigated the association between serum N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-pro-BNP) levels and extracellular water (ECW%) and left ventricular (LV) dysfunction in continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) patients.Methods The study involved 30 stable CAPD patients: 14 males, 16 females; mean age 52 ± 14 years; mean CAPD duration 34 ± 12 months; 12 with diabetes mellitus (DM) and 18 non-DM. Serum NT-pro-BNP levels were determined using electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. Baseline echocardiography was performed using a Hewlett-Packard Sonos 1000 (Andover, Massachusetts, USA) device equipped with a 2.25-MHz probe, allowing M-mode, two-dimensional, and pulsed Doppler measurements. Left ventricular mass index (LVMI) was calculated according to the Penn formula. A multifrequency bioimpedance analyzer was used; ECW% was calculated as a percentage of total body water and was considered the index of volume load.Results ( 1 ) Serum NT-pro-BNP level, ECW%, LVMI, and LV ejection fraction in CAPD patients were 3924 (240 – 74460) pg/mL, 36.7% ± 2.2%, 158 ± 48 g/m 2 , and 60.5% ± 11.2%, respectively. ( 2 ) Patients were divided into three tertiles (10 patients each) according to their serum NT-pro-BNP concentration [1st tertile 1168 (240 – 2096), 2nd tertile 4856 (2295 – 20088), 3rd tertile 35012 (20539 – 74460) pg/mL]. The tertiles did not differ significantly in terms of age, sex, presence of DM, body mass index, or PD duration. Patients in the 3rd tertile (highest serum NT-pro-BNP concentration) had the highest LVMI (126 ± 45 vs 160 ± 41 vs 200 ± 23 g/m 2 for 1st, 2nd, 3rd tertiles, respectively) and the lowest LV ejection fraction (66% ± 11% vs 62% ± 6% vs 55% ± 9%). ECW% did not differ significantly between tertiles (35.5% ± 2.0% vs 37.5% ± 2.0% vs 36.5% ± 2.0%). ( 3 ) In CAPD patients, serum NT-pro-BNP levels correlated positively with LVMI ( r = 0.628, p = 0.003) and negatively with LV ejection fraction ( r = –0.479, p = 0.033). Serum NT-pro-BNP levels did not correlate with ECW% ( r = 0.227, p = 0.25). ( 4 ) Stepwise regression analysis showed that LV ejection fraction (b = -0.610, p = 0.015) and LVMI (b = 0.415, p = 0.007) were independently associated with the serum NT-pro-BNP concentration.Conclusions There was no link between ECW% and serum NT-pro-BNP concentration. Thus, serum NT-pro-BNP levels may not provide objective information with respect to pure hydration status in CAPD patients. In contrast, serum NT-pro-BNP levels were linked to LVMI and LV ejection fraction in CAPD patients. Therefore, while the serum NT-pro-BNP concentration might not be a useful clinical marker for extracellular fluid volume load, it appears useful for evaluating LV hypertrophy and LV dysfunction in CAPD patients.