Effects of lesion complexity on baseline and postprocedural B-type natriuretic peptide levels in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions

The time-related alteration of plasma B-type natriuretic peptide levels after percutaneous coronary interventions has been investigated chiefly in patients with acute coronary syndromes; very few data are available in patients with stable coronary artery disease. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the alterations of plasma B-type natriuretic peptide levels, and the effects of lesion complexity on these levels, after elective percutaneous coronary interventions in stable coronary artery disease patients. We enrolled 103 of these patients and used modified American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association lesion morphology criteria to qualitatively evaluate the angiograms: type A and B1 lesions were categorized as simple, and type B2 and C lesions were designated as complex. Plasma B-type natriuretic peptide levels were determined before intervention and 1 and 24 hours afterwards. Median baseline B-type natriuretic peptide levels were significantly higher in patients who had complex lesions (n=53) (108 pg/mL) compared with those who had simple lesions (n=50) (33 pg/mL) (P <0.001), and this difference was maintained 1 and 24 hours after intervention (P = 0.003 and P = 0.001, respectively). However, for both lesion types, percutaneous coronary intervention procedures did not significantly alter plasma B-type natriuretic peptide levels (all P >0.05). On binary logistic regression analysis, age and lesion complexity were found to be independently associated with B-type natriuretic peptide levels. We conclude that, in stable coronary artery disease patients, elective percutaneous coronary intervention does not cause any significant alteration in plasma B-type natriuretic peptide levels. However, elevated levels are significantly associated with more complex lesions and with advanced age.