Objective To determine the si gnificance of plasma level of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF) for differential diagnosis of their acute dyspne aMethods Totally, 130 patients with acute dyspnea were selected, including 78 patients diagnosed as CHF with left ventricular ejection fraction less than 040 and 52 patients without CHF Plasma level of BNP was m easured by a rapid, point-of-care quantitative immunofluorescent assay Results Plasma level of BNP was(732?53)ng/L in patients wit h CHF, much higher than that in those without CHF(71?34)ng/L(P

Objective To assess the influence of community intervention on blood pressure and quality of life in aged patients with hypertension.Methods A total of 378 elderly hypertensive patients received community intervention with anti-high blood pressure agents for one year.Before and after intervention,blood pressure was recorded and genetic quality of life inventory(GQOLI-74),symptom checklist(SCL-90),self-rating anxiety scale(SAS),and self-rating depression scale(SDS)were carried out on the basis of giving unite guiding words.Results In addition to blood pressure degraded,the blood pressure control rate was improved after intervention(67.7% vs.40.1% before intervention,x2=57.59, P<0.05).Observation items of body health dimension,psychological health dimension,social function dimension were better than those recorded before intervention(P<0.05).But difference of the material life dimension was not statistically significant(P>0.05).With 41 scores as a SDS rude mark to judge the depression incidence.the incidence was decreased from 22.7% before intervention to 12.5%after intervention(x2=12.565,P<0.05).Conclusions Community intervention is a practical and valuable strategy for controlling high blood pressure and improving quality of life in aged patients.

Objective To investigate the effects of physical exercises on cardiac function and plasma N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels in hypertensive patients combined with diastolic cardiac dysfunction.MethodsA total of 66 essential hypertension patients who had abnormal left ventricular relaxation and normal systolic function were assigned to the intervention group ( n =33 ; doing physical exercises once a day,5 days a week) or control group (n =33 ).All the patients received standard treatment.At 6 months,body weight,blood pressure,heart rate,NT-proBNP,and echocardiography were measured.ResultsAt 6 months,body weight [ (68 ± 7 ) kg vs (72 ± 8 ) kg ],systolic blood pressure [ (135.4 ±5.1) mm Hg (1 mm Hg =0.133 kPa) vs (141.9 ±5.2) mm Hg ],diastolic blood pressure [ (81.1 ±4.0) mm Hg vs (84.7 ±4.6) mm Hg],New York Heart Association class (1.4 ±0.3 vs 1.8 ±0.4),NT-proBNP level [ (526 ± 126 ) ng/L vs (741 ± 189 ) ng/L] were significantly decreased in the intervention group when compared with the control group ( all P ＜ 0.05 ) although left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (62.9 ±6.7 vs 59.0 ±5.6) and E/A ratio ( 1.1 ±0.3 vs 0.9 ±0.3) were significantly increased ( both P ＜ 0.05).ConclusionPhysical exercises could play a role in reduced blood pressure and body weight and improved cardiac function in hypertensive patients with diastolic cardiac dysfunction.