Pathophysiologic relevance of measuring the plasma levels of cardiac natriuretic peptide hormones in humans

Cardiac natriuretic peptides (ANP, BNP, and biologically active peptides of the N-terminal proANP(1-98)) are differently regulated in their production /secretion patterns and clearance rates; consequently, the assay for these peptides may provide complementary (or even different) pathophysiological a nd/or clinical information. The assay for cardiac natriuretic peptides has been utilized in clinical conditions associated with expanded fluid volume. In particular, this assay can be useful in discriminating between normal s ubjects and patients in different stages of heart failure and can also be c onsidered a prognostic indicator of long-term survival in patients with hea rt failure and/or after acute myocardial infarction. Non-competitive immuno metric assays (such as two-site IRMAs), even if more expensive, seem to be preferable to RIAs for routinary assay of cardiac peptide hormones because they generally have a better degree of sensitivity, accuracy, and precision .