ObjectivesSpectrin breakdown products 145 kDa (SBDP145) and neurofilament heavy chain (Nf-H) have been identified as potential biomarkers of neuronal injury. However, their ability to predict hypoxic-ischemic brain injury following cardiac arrest in humans is not well understood. This study aimed to investigate whether SBDP145 and Nf-H could be used as biomarkers to predict neurological outcomes after cardiac arrest. MethodsThis prospective study was conducted at two academic hospitals and included adults who survived after cardiac arrest. Blood samples were collected at 0, 24, and 48 h after the return of spontaneous circulation, and biomarker analyses were performed to measure SBDP145 and Nf-H. Poor neurological outcome was defined as a modified Rankin Score of 4–6, and diagnostic performance was determined by receiver-operating characteristics analysis. ResultsA total of 56 patients were included in this study. There were no significant differences in levels of SBDP145 or Nf-H between the poor and good outcome groups at any time point. Areas under the receiver-operating characteristics curve of SBDP145 and Nf-H were small, ranging from 0.51 to 0.7. At 0, 24, and 48 h, SBDP145 showed very low sensitivity (18.61 %, 13.89 %, and 13.79 %, respectively) and accuracy (33.93 %, 36.74 %, and 39.02 %, respectively) at a cut-off value for 100 % specificity. Nf-H also showed very low sensitivity (9.30 %, 16.67 %, and 0 %, respectively) and accuracy (29.09 %, 36.74 %, and 30.95 %, respectively). ConclusionsSBDP145 and Nf-H were found to be poor predictors of poor neurological outcomes six months after cardiac arrest.