Natriuretic peptides: the feline experience

Abstract

In feline medicine natriuretic peptides (NP), particularly NT-proBNP, have emerged as biomarkers with significant potential. Since the introduction of the commercial ELISA that enabled the convenient and accurate measurement of circulating N terminal ANP and BNP fragments research examining the utility of these peptides as an aid to the diagnosis of feline cardiovascular disease has accelerated. This article describes the results of these studies and tries to put them in the context of clinical practice by exploring the areas of agreement and controversy and explaining the influence of confounding factors on the interpretation of NP concentrations. Considerable further work is needed to fully evaluate the clinical utility of NP regarding their potential for diagnosis, prognosis, and guidance of treatment.