Challenges in high-sensitive troponin assay interpretation for intensive therapy.

Cardiac troponins T and I are considered highly sensitive and specific markers for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction. Currently, a series of nonprimary cardiac abnormalities may manifest as an elevation in high-sensitive assays. The reduction in their detection limits has allowed earlier diagnosis and the use of evidence-based therapeutic measures; however, this characteristic has increased the spectrum of detectable noncoronary heart diseases, which poses challenges for characterizing acute coronary syndromes and creates a new role for these tests in known disorders in intensive care units, especially sepsis.

Serial High-Sensitivity Troponin T in Post-Primary Angioplasty Exercise Test.

Background: The kinetics of high-sensitivity troponin T (hscTnT) release should be studied in different situations, including functional tests with transient ischemic abnormalities.

Objective: To evaluate the release of hscTnT by serial measurements after exercise testing (ET), and to correlate hscTnT elevations with abnormalities suggestive of ischemia.

Methods: Patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary angioplasty were referred for ET 3 months after infarction.