Recently, the highest temperature in Nanjing is above 35℃ for two consecutive days, and experts have pointed out that 33℃ is the warning temperature for the health of middle-aged and elderly people, beyond which the mortality rate of middle-aged and elderly people will also rise. According to statistics, the cardiology department of Jiangsu Provincial People’s Hospital had 496 outpatient visits on Monday and 520 today, of which 40% of the patients had unexplained chest tightness and shortness of breath and other manifestations of heart failure, most of them were over 60 years old and suffered from chronic diseases such as hypertension and diabetes. Yesterday morning, 67-year-old grandmother Zhang was playing Taijiquan with her partner when she suddenly felt chest tightness and shortness of breath, and was rushed to the cardiology department of Jiangsu Provincial People’s Hospital by her family. The family was very worried about Zhang, who has suffered from hypertension for nearly 20 years. After understanding her medical history, the cardiologist suspected that it was caused by chronic heart failure and suggested a BNP serum test. Half an hour later, the BNP result was normal, indicating that Grandma Zhang’s chest tightness and shortness of breath were not caused by heart failure. However, his children were not assured and made another echocardiogram this morning, which showed that Grandma Zhang’s heart structure and ejection fraction were normal, ruling out the possibility of chronic heart failure, and the specific cause needed further examination. According to Professor Li Dianfu, director of the Department of Nuclear Medicine and nuclear cardiologist at Jiangsu Provincial People’s Hospital, some elderly people with cardiopulmonary insufficiency are prone to chest tightness, shortness of breath and breathlessness due to the high temperature and humidity recently. After the above situation occurs, in addition to the first time to the hospital, the doctor’s first accurate judgment is also very important. Generally speaking there are three main causes of chest tightness and shortness of breath, cardiogenic, pulmonary and neurological syndromes. How to quickly identify and diagnose these three causes? In the past, doctors could only diagnose these three causes through physical examination and detailed medical history. If a patient has a history of chronic diseases such as hypertension or diabetes and neurological syndromes are excluded, doctors often recommend an echocardiogram to determine the physiological structure of the heart and ejection fraction. However, due to the large number of patients and limited machines, an ultrasound diagnosis can take as short as half a day or as long as a day. If a BNP serum test is done, it only takes half an hour to identify and diagnose whether the patient’s chest tightness and shortness of breath is related to heart disease. Professor Li told reporters that BNP is a peptide containing 32 amino acids and is mainly secreted from the ventricles in response to ventricular overwork. Studies have shown that plasma BNP concentration is positively correlated with the severity of heart failure, especially in patients suspected of heart failure, where BNP measurement can identify left heart systolic insufficiency and is superior to ultrasound diagnosis. Rapid plasma BNP concentrations are useful in the differential diagnosis of cardiac and pulmonary acute dyspnea, and BNP is also an important marker of prognosis in heart failure patients. Currently, BNP has moved from being a scientific tool to a practical clinical method. In the future, BNP will be used by primary care physicians to confirm the clinical diagnosis of heart failure and to assess the functional status of the heart. Cardiologists use it to determine the prognosis and decide whether to proceed with further treatment. The most advantageous thing is that we can use it to monitor heart failure patients and perform a series of BNP measurements to adjust therapeutic measures instead of treating them based on subjective experience as we do now. Currently, only a few large three hospitals in the province, such as the Provincial People’s Hospital and Provincial Organ Hospital, carry out this test. Prof. Li Dengfu reminded that during the summer heat and humidity, middle-aged and elderly people, especially those with chronic diseases such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes, coronary heart disease and COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) are prone to relapse at this time, so we must pay attention to maintain a healthy lifestyle. First, strengthen the control of the primary disease, take the medication on time and in the right amount, and review it regularly. Second, to prevent heat and cold, the temperature of the air-conditioned room should not be too low, 27-28 ℃ is better. Three heart failure patients should reduce water consumption, diet should be less salt, light mainly. Four elderly people with chronic diseases should reduce the amount of exercise to reduce the load on the heart. Five due to early dawn, sleep time will be reduced, if the middle-aged and elderly people who are used to get up early, they should rest properly at noon, the time should not be too long 1-2 hours can be. Six For patients with a clear diagnosis of heart failure, BNP serum testing should be done regularly to closely monitor the development of the heart failure disease process and adjust treatment measures in a timely manner to prevent problems before they occur.