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. 2025 Nov 4;26(21):10718.
doi: 10.3390/ijms262110718.

Galectin-3 and Strain Imaging for Early Heart Failure Prediction After First Myocardial Infarction

Małgorzata Sikora-Frąc  1 , Grażyna Sygitowicz  2 , Ewa Pilichowska-Paszkiet  1 , Krzysztof Smarż  1 , Paweł Maciejewski  1 , Piotr Kokowicz  1 , Marta Prządka  1 , Andrzej Budaj  1 , Beata Zaborska  1
Affiliations

Galectin-3 and Strain Imaging for Early Heart Failure Prediction After First Myocardial Infarction

Małgorzata Sikora-Frąc et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Galectin-3 (Gal-3), a biomarker of fibrosis, is involved in post-infarction remodelling, but its short-term prognostic value remains uncertain. This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of Gal-3 for new-onset heart failure (HF) in first acute myocardial infarction (MI) during the in-hospital phase following MI and to assess its association with advanced echocardiographic indices of myocardial and atrial dysfunction, including left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LVGLS) and left atrial reservoir strain. In this prospective study, 105 consecutive patients with STEMI/NSTEMI (mean age 61 ± 11 years) were enrolled. New-onset HF, defined by symptoms, elevated NT-proBNP, and echocardiographic LV dysfunction, developed in 34 patients (32%) during follow-up of a median of 10 [8-13] days. Median serum Gal-3 concentration was 11.6 [9.5-13.5] ng/mL. Gal-3 correlated with echocardiographic indices of myocardial and atrial dysfunction (p = 0.001). Receiver operating characteristic analysis showed moderate discriminative ability (AUC = 0.712; cut-off > 10.9 ng/mL). In multivariable regression, both Gal-3 and LVGLS independently predicted HF, and their combination improved discrimination (AUC = 0.833). In conclusion, Gal-3, particularly when combined with LVGLS, is a valuable early prognostic marker of new-onset HF during the in-hospital phase of acute MI. The combined assessment of Gal-3 and GLS provides a novel, translational biomarker-imaging approach to post-MI prognosis.

Keywords: acute myocardial infarction; galectin-3; heart failure; left atrial reservoir strain; left ventricular global longitudinal strain.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Correlation between Gal-3 and GLS.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Correlation between Gal-3 and LARS.
Figure 3
Figure 3
ROC curve analysis of Gal-3 serum concentration in the diagnosis of new-onset HF in acute MI.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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