Levels of a stress-related protein in the blood could give doctors a powerful new tool for deciding which patients with clogged heart arteries are most in danger and need aggressive treatment, a study found. This protein is yet another predictor of heart trouble, in addition to such better-known substances as cholesterol and C-reactive protein. The Danish study, published in Thursday’s New England Journal of Medicine, focused on a substance called B-natriuretic peptide, or BNP. It is released into the blood when the heart undergoes stress.
