Effects of high-urgency ambulance transportation on pro-B-type natriuretic peptide levels in patients with heart failure

ObjectivesWe hypothesized that pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (proBNP) levels in venous blood increase in patients with acute out-of-hospital heart failure because of stress during emergency ambulance transportation, and furthermore, we wanted to show if there is an effect of increasing proBNP levels on hemodynamic parameters.MethodsVenous proBNP levels, visual analog scale (VAS) for pain and anxiety before and after transportation, heart rate, blood pressure, and transcutaneous Spo2 were measured every 3 minutes in 32 patients with defined clinical signs of heart failure.ResultsProBNP levels increased significantly (P < .01) during transportation (278.13 ± 113.20 vs 984.67 ± 627.33 pg/mL), whereas heart rate and mean blood pressure remained almost stable. There was no significant change in VAS for pain and anxiety (3.79 ± 3.70 and 2.89 ± 3.01 vs 2.13 ± 3.30 and 1.57 ± 2.78).ConclusionA rapid increase in proBNP levels was shown in patients with acute out-of-hospital heart failure during emergency ambulance transportation but no significant changes in hemodynamic parameters.