Galectin-3 in patients with chronic heart failure: association with oxidative stress, inflammation, renal dysfunction and prognosis.

Background: Galectin-3 is a recently developed biomarker of fibrosis, which may play a role in cardiac remodeling and associated with both the progression and severity of heart failure (HF).

Methods: A prospective cohort study of 190 patients with documented prior myocardial infarction and chronic HF (NYHA class II-IV) was conducted. Patients were divided into 3 groups based on their NYHA functional class.