High-sensitive cardiac troponin T

Cardiac troponin is the preferred biomarker for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI). The recent development of a high-sensitive cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) assay permits detection of very low levels of cTnT. Using the hs-cTnT assay improves the overall diagnostic accuracy in patients with suspected AMI, while a negative result also has a high negative predictive value. The gain in sensitivity may be particularly important in patients with a short duration from symptom onset to admission. Measurement of cardiac troponin T with the hs-cTnT assay may provide strong prognostic information in patients with acute coronary syndromes, stable coronary artery disease, heart failure and even in the general population; however, increased sensitivity comes at a cost of decreased specificity. Serial testing, as well as clinical context and co-existing diseases, are likely to become increasingly important for the interpretation of hs-cTnT assay results.