Usefulness of amino terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide in evaluating children with cardiac failure

Cardiac failure is defined as a clinical syndrome in which the heart is unable to pump enough blood to meet the body’s demands, to dispose of venous return adequately or a combination of both (1). It contributes significantly to childhood morbidity and mortality globally (2,3). The prevalence of heart failure from various studies done within Nigeria has ranged from 5.8–15.5% (4-6), while the mortality rates reported for children from this disease condition has ranged from 5.34–33.2% (5,6), thus identifying heart failure as a significant contributor to childhood mortality