α-1 Antitrypsin as a potential biomarker in chronic heart failure

Background Heart failure is characterized by a tissue damage that progressively leads to mechanical cardiac dysfunction and remodeling. A recent investigation showed that α-1 antitripsin, an antiprotease, able to inhibit metalloproteinases, provides prognostic information about heart failure and mortality postacute myocardial infarction. Therefore, we conducted a study to establish if α-1 antitrypsin (AAT) could be considered a marker of severity of heart failure. Methods A total of 182 heart failure patients (Group 1) were enrolled and AAT values were compared with controls (Group 2). Results In Group 1 a significant increment of AAT levels respect to Group 2 was observed (P 
Source: Journal of Cardiovascular Medicine - Category: Cardiology Tags: Research articles: Heart failure Source Type: research