Objective To measure serum soluble ST2 level in patients with heart failure and to evaluate its diagnostic value for heart failure. MethodsWe selected 192 heart failure patients who were hospitalized in the Cardiology Department of East Hospital, Tongji University during Jul. 2009 to Dec. 2010. The selected patients were divided into different groups according to the classification criterion of New York Heart Association(NYHA). The serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, brain natriuretic peptide, cardiac troponin I (cTnI), and creatine kinase isomer-MB were all examined after admission. All the patients received cardiac ultrasound examination. The soluble ST2 levels were determined by ELISA. ResultsThe level of sST2 in heart failure patients was significantly higher than that in healthy controls(P=0.003). The diagnosis sensitivity and specificity of soluble ST2 for heat failure were 88.2% and 77.8%, respectively. Correlation analysis showed that sST2 value was correlated with B-type natriuretic peptide(r=0.427, P=0.01), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein(r=0.252, P=0.023), troponin(r=0.330, P=0.041) and left ventricular ejection fraction(r=-0.354, P=0.047). ConclusionST2 is correlated with B-type natriuretic peptide, left ventricular ejection fraction and so on, and it can be used for diagnosis of heart failure. High ST2 level indicates poor short-term prognosis of heart failure patients.