SVEAT score outperforms HEART score in patients admitted to a chest pain observation unit

BACKGROUND: Timely and accurate identification of subgroup at risk for major adverse cardiovascular events among patients presenting with acute chest pain remains a challenge. Currently available risk stratification scores are suboptimal. Recently, a new scoring system called the Symptoms, history of Vascular disease, Electrocardiography, Age, and Troponin (SVEAT) score has been shown to outperform the History, Electrocardiography, Age, Risk factors and Troponin (HEART) score, one of the most used risk scores in the United States. AIM: To assess the potential usefulness of the SVEAT score as a risk stratification tool by comparing its performance to HEART score in chest pain patients with low suspicion for acute coronary syndrome and admitted for overnight observation. To avoid potential biases, investigators assigned to calculate the SVEAT, and HEART scores were blinded to the results of 30-d combined endpoint of death, acute myocardial infarction or confirmed coronary artery disease requiring revascularization or medical therapy [30-d major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE)]. An area under receiving-operator characteristic curve (AUC) for each score was then calculated. C-statistic and logistic model were used to compare predictive performance of the two scores. CONCLUSION: The SVEAT score is superior to the HEART score as a risk stratification tool for acute chest pain in low to intermediate risk patients.