Role of Serum NT-proBNP Levels in Early Prediction of Prognosis in Severe COVID-19 Pneumonia

Introduction: Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) infection is a viral disease characterized by fast transmission and heterogeneous clinical manifestations in people. Cardiac complications with different clinical presentations are observed during the disease course. In this study, we aimed to determine the importance of the N-terminal of the prohormone brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) level to predict the prognosis in severe COVID-19 pneumonia and its optimal cut-off value. Methods: A total of 131 patients who were admitted to a hospital with severe COVID-19 pneumonia and who did not have a history of heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or chronic renal disease were included in the study. Diabetes mellitus and hypertension rates were recorded. Inflammatory markers (ferritin, C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, interleukin-6) and proBNP levels were measured. In-hospital mortality and recovery rates were recorded. The relationship between proBNP levels and chronic disease existence, inflammatory markers, and in-hospital mortality was evaluated using SPSS. Results: ProBNP levels were significantly higher in the non-survivor group than in the survivor group. The cut-off value of proBNP to predict in-hospital mortality was 650 pg/mL with 87% sensitivity and 62% specificity. The ProBNP >650 pg/mL group had higher hypertension rates, procalcitonin levels, intensive care unit admittance rates, and in-hospital mortality than ProBNP <= 650 pg/mL group (p<0.05). Conclusion: This study showed that NT-proBNP levels can be used to predict prognosis in severe COVID-19 pneumonia and that it is an independent risk factor for in-hospital mortality.