Atrial fibrillation (AF) and heart failure (HF) with non-reduced left ventricle ejection fraction (LVEF) present a diagnostic overlap. In this paper, we analyze differences in biomarkers between patients with and without HF, in a cohort of patients presenting with symptomatic AF. Differences in biomarkers between patients with medium range ejection fraction HF (HFmrEF) and those with preserved ejection fraction HF (HFpEF) are also analyzed.
A total of 115 patients with symptomatic persistent AF were included. Seven biomarkers were measured: NT-proBNP, high sensitivity T troponin (hsTNT), galectin-3, ST2, fibrinogen, urate and C-reactive protein.
Patients with non-reduced LVEF HF had significantly higher NT-proBNP levels than those without HF. This biomarker was the only variable independently related with the presence of non-reduced LVEF HF. Troponin was the only factor independently related with the presence of HFmrEF.
NT-proBNP showed the best diagnostic accuracy for detecting the presence of non-reduced LVEF HF. We found higher diagnostic NT-proBNP cut-off values than those previously reported. Troponin was the most accurate biomarker differentiating HFmrEF from HFpEF.

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