How to use high-sensitivity cardiac troponins in acute cardiac care

Recommendations for the use of cardiac troponin (cTn) measurement in acute cardiac care have recently been published.1 Subsequently, a high-sensitivity (hs) cTn T assay was introduced into routine clinical practice.2 This assay, as others, called highly sensitive, permits measurement of cTn concentrations in significant numbers of apparently illness-free individuals. These assays can measure cTn in the single digit range of nanograms per litre (=picograms per millilitre) and some research assays even allow detection of concentrations 10% at the 99th percentile URL limiting that ability.5–7 However, the less precise cTn assays do not cause clinically relevant false-positive diagnosis of acute myocardial…

• AH
  American Heart Association
• AC
  American College of Cardiology Foundation