WALTHAM, Mass., May 28, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- BG Medicine, Inc. (BGMD) today announced the presentation of new clinical research data on the BGM Galectin-3(R) test in heart disease at the 2013 European Society of Cardiology Heart Failure Congress (ESC-HF) in Lisbon, Portugal. Among the highlights was a late-breaking oral presentation of results from the Aldo-DHF Biomarker Substudy which demonstrated the usefulness of galectin-3 testing for assessing functional capacity and clinical prognosis in patients diagnosed with a form of heart failure known as Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEF).i Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction is the fastest growing type of clinical heart failure in the United States and Europe, disproportionately affecting women and accounting for one-third to one-half of all hospital admissions for heart failure.ii

The Aldo-DHF study findings were presented by Dr. Frank Edelmann of the Department of Cardiology and Pneumology and the German Center for Cardiovascular Research at the University of Gottingen. The title of Dr. Edelmann's late-breaking special sessions oral presentation was Galectin-3 Reflects Functional Capacity and Clinical Outcome in Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (The Aldo-DHF Biomarker Substudy.)

"Galectin-3 has the potential to be a valuable test in clinical risk stratification for heart failure patients. In this study of 422 patients with diagnosed HFpEF, elevated galectin-3 levels, and particularly changes in galectin-3 over time, were statistically predictive of subsequent hospitalizations and mortality," commented Dr. Edelmann.

"The data presented at ESC-HF further demonstrate that galectin-3 may be an important determinant of heart failure risk across the clinical spectrum of disease," stated Paul Sohmer, President and CEO of BG Medicine. "Unplanned hospitalizations of patients with heart failure are a major cost burden on healthcare systems, particularly among patients with a diagnosis of HFpEF, one of the fastest growing but most difficult types of heart failure to identify and treat. The data presented at ESC-HF suggest that galectin-3 testing may help to identify HFpEF patients who are at risk of near-term adverse events."

In addition to the presentation of the Aldo-DHF Biomarker Substudy, other research on galectin-3 in heart disease presented at the ESC-HF meeting included:

- Reduction in 30 Day Death and Heart Failure Rehospitalization with Mineralocorticoid Receptor Antagonists: An Analysis from the COACH Study, A. Maisel (San Diego, US), et. al.

- Late-breaking Research Abstract Presentation

- Galectin-3 in Heart Failure with Preserved Versus Reduced Ejection Fraction, R. Santhanakrishnan (Singapore), et al.

- Abstract P-1737

- Elevated Plasma Galectin-3 Levels Correlate with Echocardiographic Parameters of Diastolic Dysfunction in Patients with Stable Heart Failure with Preserved Ejection Fraction (HFpEF), B. Munoz Calvo (Alcala de Henares, Spain), et al.

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BG Medicine Announces Late-Breaker Oral Presentation of New Data on the BGM Galectin-3(R) Test in Heart Failure