Blood-urea-nitrogen-to-serum-albumin ratio in predicting the value of patients with contrast-induced nephropathy for coronary heart disease

Abstract

Background: The blood-urea-nitrogen (BUN)-to-serum-albumin (ALB) ratio (BAR) has been identified as a novel indicator of both inflammatory and nutritional status, exhibiting a correlation with adverse cardiovascular outcomes. This study aims to investigate the potential predictive value of BAR levels at admission for the development of CIN in patients undergoing coronary angiography (CAG) or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

Methods: Retrospective data were collected from patients who were admitted and underwent CAG or PCI between January 2018 and December 2022 at the Cardiac Medical Center of Union Hospital of Fujian Medical University, and the patients were divided into CIN and non-CIN groups. The BAR was computed by dividing the BUN count by the ALB count. Using multiple variable logistic regression, risk variables associated with the development of CIN were found.

Results: A total of 156 patients developed CIN (7.78%). The development of CIN was predicted by a BAR ratio > 4.340 with a sensitivity of 84.0% and a specificity of 70.2%, according to receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis. BAR, female gender, diuretic use, and statin medication use were found to be independent predictors of CIN using multifactorial analysis.

Conclusions: When patients are receiving CAG/PCI, BAR is a simple-to-use marker that can be used independently to predict the presence of CIN.

Keywords: Blood–urea–nitrogen-to-serum–albumin ratio; Contrast-induced nephropathy; Coronary arteriography; Percutaneous coronary intervention; coronary heart disease.