Key result
Heterophile antibodies caused a spuriously elevated cardiac troponin level of 30.15 ng/dl in a patient presenting with atypical chest pain without acute myocardial infarction.
Laboratory values such as elevated troponin must be interpreted in the clinical context, as spurious elevations can occur due to heterophile antibodies.
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Spurious troponin elevation from heterophile antibodies can mimic MI; supports clinical correlation and leaves open assay interference prevalence.
A 47-year-old woman presented with atypical chest pain and a troponin level of 30.15 ng/dl. A detailed diagnostic work-up did not detect an acute myocardial infarction but revealed the presence of heterophile antibodies. Laboratory values need to be interpreted in the context of the clinical picture when test results do not correspond to clinical findings. (Level of Difficulty: Beginner.)
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Kassem et al. (2020) studied this question. Heterophile antibodies caused a spuriously elevated cardiac troponin level of 30.15 ng/dl in a patient presenting with atypical chest pain without acute myocardial infarction.
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