Hazard ratio curves for the association between NT-proBNP levels and the risk of heart failure in non-obese (n = 1,095) and obese (n = 265) participants.

<p>Results are illustrated for non-obese (BMI<30 kg/m²) and obese (BMI≥30 kg/m²) participants. The solid lines indicate hazard ratios of heart failure as obtained by restricted cubic spline Cox regression with knots (marked by vertical dotted lines) placed at fixed values (∼15th, 25th, 75th and 95th percentile of the distribution of NT-proBNP in the entire case-cohort). The reference was set at ∼50th percentile = 55 pg/ml of NT-proBNP. The dashed lines indicate hazard ratios of heart failure as observed by Cox regression analysis per continuous increment of NT-proBNP. Hazard ratios curves are adjusted for age, sex, educational degree, physical activity, smoking status, alcohol consumption, WC, prevalent diseases (diabetes, CHD, hypertension) and biomarkers (hsCRP, creatinine, total cholesterol and HDL cholesterol).