Point-of-care high-sensitivity cardiac troponin in suspected acute myocardial infarction assessed at baseline and 2 h

Strategies to assess patients with suspected acute myocardial infarction (AMI) using a point-of-care (POC) high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) assay may expedite emergency care. A 2-h POC hs-cTnI strategy for emergency patients with suspected AMI was derived and validated.

In two international, multi-centre, prospective, observational studies of adult emergency patients (1486 derivation cohort and 1796 validation cohort) with suspected AMI, hs-cTnI (Siemens Atellica^® VTLi) was measured at admission and 2 h later. Adjudicated final diagnoses utilized the hs-cTn assay in clinical use. A risk stratification algorithm was derived and validated. The primary diagnostic outcome was index AMI (Types 1 and 2). The primary safety outcome was 30-day major adverse cardiac events incorporating AMI and cardiac death.

Overall, 81 (5.5%) and 88 (4.9%) patients in the derivation and validation cohorts, respectively, had AMI. The 2-h algorithm defined 66.1% as low risk with a sensitivity of 98.8% [95% confidence interval (CI) 89.3%–99.9%] and a negative predictive value of 99.9 (95% CI 99.2%–100%) for index AMI in the derivation cohort. In the validation cohort, 53.3% were low risk with a sensitivity of 98.9% (95% CI 92.4%–99.8%) and a negative predictive value of 99.9% (95% CI 99.3%–100%) for index AMI. The high-risk metrics identified 5.4% of patients with a specificity of 98.5% (95% CI 96.6%–99.4%) and a positive predictive value of 74.5% (95% CI 62.7%–83.6%) for index AMI.

A 2-h algorithm using a POC hs-cTnI concentration enables safe and efficient risk assessment of patients with suspected AMI. The short turnaround time of POC testing may support significant efficiencies in the management of the large proportion of emergency patients with suspected AMI.