BNP point-of-care testing

BNP Levels

Measuring levels of BNP is most useful in the evaluation of patients with dyspnea presenting to the emergency department, where point-of-care testing may provide the advantages of convenience and rapid turnaround times, thereby facilitating clinical management.

Maisel et al. (NEJM, 2002) observed in the Breathing Not Properly study that BNP levels greatly increased the accuracy of the diagnosis of heart failure in patients presenting to emergency departments with dyspnea; in these patients, a level of more than 100 pg per milliliter indicates that the diagnosis of heart failure is unlikely, whereas a level of more than 400 pg/mL suggests that this diagnosis is likely.