WHAT ARE BIOMARKERS HOW MIGHT WE USE THEM?

摘要

One working definition of biomarkers was suggested as follows: a biomarker is "a characteristic that is objectively measured and evaluated as an indicator of normal biologic processes, pathogenic processes, or pharmacologic responses to a therapeuticintervention." This definition could cover numerous measurable characteristics in patients with heart disease from heart rate to bioelectrical impedance! The term is now being used in a more restricted sense to indicate a substance measured, often in the blood, indicative of the presence, stage or severity of an underlying disease process.