Usefulness Of Cardiac Troponin T Rapid Assay For The Diagnosis Of Myocardial Injury On Emergency Patients

Cardiac troponin T is a specific myocardial marker for the diagnosis of acute coronary syndrome. Recently, the rapid bedside cardiac troponin T assay (Trop T), which can provide qualitative determinations within 15 minutes, has been developed. The aim of this study is to evaluate the usefulness of the Trop T test for the diagnosis of myocardial injury in emergency patients. The Trop T test was performed on 56 consecutive emergency patients, whose main diagnoses on admission were non-cardiac diseases. Myocardial injury was evaluated by electrocardiograms and echocardiograms. Additionally, we investigated cardiac complications and the clinical outcomes of these patients. The Trop T test was positive in 10 of 56 patients. The incidence of abnormal electrocardiograms, ventricular arrhythmias and acute heart failure were significantly more frequent in patients with positive Trop T tests than those in patients with negative tests. The incidence of abnormal echocardiograms did not differ significantly between the patients with positive and negative Trop T tests. The mean length of patients' stay in the emergency center was significantly longer in patients with positive Trop T tests than in patients with negative tests. The in-hospital mortality rate of patients with positive tests was not significantly different from that of patients with negative tests (30% versus 11%). These results suggest that the Trop T test is a useful indicator for the screening of myocardial injury and the risk stratification in emergency patients.