RESPONSE BIOMEDICAL RAMP® PRO-BNP PATIENT TEST

Heart failure (HF) is a chronic, progressive disease in which the heart muscle weakens and its function becomes impaired, thus impeding the heart’s ability to pump enough blood to support the body’s metabolic demands. When cardiac muscle is stretched, such as with elevated ventricular filling pressure, the inactive prohormone B-type natriuretic peptide (proBNP) is released and rapidly cleaved into physiologically active BNP and the N-terminal fragment NT-proBNP [1]. Natriuretic peptides can be used for the diagnosis of clinical problems associated with left ventricular dysfunction [2]. The advent of testing for BNPs has improved the ability of physicians to make a qualified diagnosis of heart failure and to monitor the success of treatment [3]. Being able to test the levels of NT-proBNP in patient blood samples is very useful as these levels are indicative of the degree of HF, and when combined with clinical judgment they provide superior diagnostic performance than clinical judgment alone [4,5]. NT-proBNP has been used for risk stratification of patients with acute coronary syndrome and HF [6-8]. It has also been shown to aid in the assessment of increased risk of cardiovascular events and mortality in patients at risk for HF who have stable coronary artery disease [9-11]. Point-of-care (POC) or “near-patient” testing allows for diagnostic assays to be performed at the site of patient care delivery such as the emergency room (ER), chest pain evaluation center, or intensive care unit (ICU). Compared with centralized laboratory testing, POC testing provides for rapid clinical decision making by reducing the time spent ordering tests, collecting and transporting samples, as well as retrieving data.