What are the outcomes of the systematic review of NT-proBNP and BNP assay for diagnosing heart failure in people with atrial fibrillation and suspected heart failure in a community or outpatient setting?
A systematic review was conducted for single gate studies assessing the diagnostic test accuracy of BNP or NT- proBNP to identify the presence of heart failure (as indicated by the reference standard) in people with atrial fibrillation and suspected heart failure in a community or outpatient setting. A search was also conducted for diagnostic RCTs comparing outcomes in patients tested with BNP versus NT- proBNP. No studies meeting either review protocol were identified. The outcomes of the systematic review were efficacy outcomes (all-cause mortality, quality of life, and unplanned hospitalisation), process outcomes (number of people receiving echocardiography, i.e., including people who may not have needed it such as those with false positive results, and repeat testing/additional testing), and secondary accuracy outcomes (sensitivity/specificity and other test accuracy measures). No relevant economic evaluations were identified.