Growth-Differentiation Factor-15 as Additional Prognostic Biomarkers in Heart Failure

Heart Failure (HF) remains to be a leading factor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Although risk stratification of HF is promising prediction care, there are several controversies regarding choosing more optimal combinations of biomarkers and method (single versus serial measurements) of biomarker use in routine clinical practice. Growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) is considered a biomarker associated with cardiac/vascular remodeling, oxidative stress, fibrosis and inflammation that were proposed to stratify HF patients at risk of death. It has been suggested that GDF-15 adding to natriuretic peptides or other conventional biomarkers (soluble ST2, cardiac troponins and galectin-3) might improve discriminative value of entire predictive models. The short communication is depicted the discussion about the perspectives of clinical use of GDF-15 in risk stratification of HF.