New Blood Test More Accurate In Identifying Heart Failure In ERs
(New Orleans, LA) -- A new blood test has been shown to work better than current tests for identifying heart patients most in need of treatment at emergency rooms when complaining of shortness of breath. Doctors say heart failure can be difficult to diagnose in an ER setting. The test was developed by German company Brahms AG and will be submitted as part of an approval package to the Food and Drug Administration. It has already been approved for use in Europe. One of the lead investigators involved in the study said, quote, "the MR-proADM test will help ensure patients are accurately diagnosed and rapidly receive the treatment they need." Compared with the 60-point-six percent accuracy rate for the BNP test and 63 percent for the NT-pro-BNP test, the Brahms heart failure test had a 73-point-one-percent accuracy. Heart failure is defined as a condition in which the heart cannot pump enough blood for the body's needs. |