Adiponectin is valuable in the diagnosis of acute heart failure with renal insufficiency

Acute heart failure (AHF) is a major public health issue due to its high incidence and poor prognosis; thus, efficient and timely diagnosis is critical for improving the prognosis and lowering the mortality rate. Amino-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) is widely used in the diagnosis of AHF; however, its efficacy is controversial in diagnosing AHF with renal insufficiency. There were numerous studies reporting the association of adiponectin (ADPN) and heart diseases. Therefore, the present study aimed to investigate whether ADPN is helpful in identifying AHF with renal insufficiency. A total of 407 participants (218 AHF patients and 189 controls) were enrolled into the current study. The plasma levels of ADPN and NT-proBNP were measured using a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and an electrochemiluminescence immunoassay, respectively. In addition, these levels were compared among the various New York Health Association classes, as well as the ischemic and non-ischemic AHF cases. The correlation between the two biomarkers and the renal function was analyzed by Spearman's correlation, while the diagnostic efficiency of ADPN and NT-proBNP was evaluated in AHF patients with and without renal insufficiency. The results revealed that NT-proBNP exhibited a higher diagnostic efficiency as compared with ADPN in patients without renal insufficiency [area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC), 0.905 vs. 0.775]. By contrast, the ADPN presented a better diagnostic value in comparison with NT-proBNP in AHF with renal insufficiency (AUC, 0.872 vs. 0.828). Therefore, a combination of these two biomarkers may provide an excellent efficacy in the diagnosis of AHF with renal insufficiency (AUC, 0.904; sensitivity, 71.2%; specificity, 98.3%). In conclusion, ADPN is a valuable biomarker for diagnosing AHF, particularly in patients with impaired renal function.