OBJECTIVES: Congestive heart failure (CHF) has been associated with elevated biomarker levels reflecting chronic low-grade inflammation. YKL-40 is a biomarker with increasing levels in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) of increasing severity. Furthermore, YKL-40 is associated with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. We investigated plasma YKL-40 levels in patients with CHF and evaluated the possible predictive value with respect to overall mortality and recurrent cardiovascular outcomes. DESIGN: Plasma YKL-40 was measured in 194 CHF patients and in 117 age-matched individuals without CVD. RESULTS: Median YKL-40 levels were approximately 77% higher in patients with CHF (106 (IQR, 66-184) ng/ml vs. 60 (IQR, 42-97) ng/ml, p < 0.0001). We found a trend towards an association of YKL-40 levels with urinary albumin/creatinine ratio (UACR) (beta = 0.12, p = 0.08). YKL-40 levels were not predictive of overall mortality (p = 0.59), major cardiovascular events (p = 0.23) or events of incompensation (p = 0.56). CONCLUSIONS: Plasma YKL-40 levels are elevated in patients with CHF but show no association with other clinical or paraclinical variables. YKL-40 levels were not predictive of overall mortality or incident cardiovascular events. Most likely, elevated YKL-40 levels in CHF patients are explained by the presence of concomitant diseases but a role of YKL-40 in low-grade inflammation is not excluded.
OBJECTIVES:Congestive heart failure (CHF) has been associated with elevated biomarker levels reflecting chronic low-grade inflammation. YKL-40 is a biomarker with increasing levels in patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) of increasing severity. Furthermore, YKL-40 is associated with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. We investigated plasma YKL-40 levels in patients with CHF and evaluated the possible predictive value with respect to overall mortality and recurrent cardiovascular outcomes. DESIGN: Plasma YKL-40 was measured in 194 CHFpatients and in 117 age-matched individuals without CVD. RESULTS: Median YKL-40 levels were approximately 77% higher in patients with CHF (106 (IQR, 66-184) ng/ml vs. 60 (IQR, 42-97) ng/ml, p < 0.0001). We found a trend towards an association of YKL-40 levels with urinary albumin/creatinine ratio (UACR) (beta = 0.12, p = 0.08). YKL-40 levels were not predictive of overall mortality (p = 0.59), major cardiovascular events (p = 0.23) or events of incompensation (p = 0.56). CONCLUSIONS: Plasma YKL-40 levels are elevated in patients with CHF but show no association with other clinical or paraclinical variables. YKL-40 levels were not predictive of overall mortality or incident cardiovascular events. Most likely, elevated YKL-40 levels in CHFpatients are explained by the presence of concomitant diseases but a role of YKL-40 in low-grade inflammation is not excluded.
Authors: Naja Dam Mygind; Anna Axelsson; Martin H Ruwald; Morten Dalsgaard; Rolf Steffensen; Kasper Iversen; Julia S Johansen; Jens Kastrup Journal: Cardiovasc Endocrinol Date: 2016-01-04
Authors: Elke Bouwens; Victor J van den Berg; K Martijn Akkerhuis; Sara J Baart; Kadir Caliskan; Jasper J Brugts; Henk Mouthaan; Jan van Ramshorst; Tjeerd Germans; Victor A W M Umans; Eric Boersma; Isabella Kardys Journal: J Clin Med Date: 2020-01-10 Impact factor: 4.241