Table 1.
An overview of studies reporting on the correlation between epicardial fat and B-type natriuretic peptide levels in individuals with heart failure
| Author | Study design | Participants | N | Age (years) | EFT (mm) | BNP (pg/ml) | Sex (male) | Country | Main findings | Quality assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [26] | Case-control | Heart Failure | 57 | 68 ± 12 | 3.9 | 516000 | 96 (79%) | Greece | Epicardial fat thickness (EFT) did not differ in patients with heart failure compared to controls, while a negative correlation between EFT and B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) serum levels in the heart failure group was observed | Good |
| Control | 64 | 64 ± 11 | 3.8 | 79000 | ||||||
| [27] | Case-control | Heart failure | 30 | 57.0 ± 15.8 | Not reported | 2871 | 40 (67%) | Norway | Patients in the heart failure group exhibited higher levels of NT-proBNP, compared to the control group, which was associated with reduced systolic cardiac function with lower left ventricular ejection fraction | Good |
| Control | 30 | 59 ± 17.7 | 546 | |||||||
| [28] | Case-control | Heart failure | 110 | 68 ± 8 | Not reported | 2498 | 92 (58%) | China | Patients with heart failure had increased levels of BNP, consistent with increased C1q and tumour necrosis factor-related protein 1 (CTRP1) levels in the plasma and EAT, compared to controls | Good |
| Control | 50 | 67 ± 5 | 14 | |||||||
| [29] | Case–control | Normal nutrition | 31 | 67.2 ± 10.9 | Not reported | 2669.4 | 61.3 | Spain | There was a strong association between BNP levels, upregulated EAT adiponectin levels, and failing nutritional status, where heart failure patients with worse malnutrition had the highest BNP levels | Very good |
| Mild malnutrition | 35 | 67.1 ± 12.5 | 4167 | |||||||
| Moderate to severe malnutrition | 8 | 72.0 ± 7.96 | 9231 | |||||||
| [30] | Case–control | Heart failure | 64 | 70 ± 10.7 | 107# | 885 | 53 (42%) | The Netherlands | EFT was significantly higher in heart failure patients compared to controls. | Good |
| Controls | 20 | 66 ± 5.5 | 77# | Not reported | ||||||
| [31] | Case-control | HFrEF | 113 | 65 (60.0–70.0) | 4.9 | 2,748 | 530 (92%) | USA | Patients with HFrEF and HFpEF had higher NT-proBNP levels compared to the control group. In addition to other measures of adiposity, EFT was independently associated with increased NT-proBNP levels irrespective of heart failure status | Very good |
| HFpEF | 92 | 64 (59.0–71.0) | 4.8 | 486 | ||||||
| Controls | 367 | 63 (57.0–68.8)* | 4.8 | 325 |
Age is indicated as mean ± SD or *median and interquartile range. #ml/m2 HFrEF heart failure with reduced ejection fraction, HFpEF heart failure with preserved ejection fraction, EFT epicardial fat thickness, BNP brain natriuretic peptide, NT-proBNP N-terminal proBNP