[The troponin complex: a new biochemical approach to cardiac insufficiency]

The progression of cardiac failure is related to the loss of functional myocytes. The aim of these studies was to describe the structural degradation of the myocardium by the use of cardiac troponins as specific and sensitive markers of cardiac cell necrosis. The cardiac isoforms of troponin I and troponin T were measured in patients with NYHA class III-IV heart failure using second generation immunoassays without cross-reactivity with the skeletal isoforms of the two proteins. The results showed that the cardiac troponin I (72.1 +/- 15.8 vs 20.4 +/- 3.2 pg/mL; p < 0.01) and troponin T (0.21 +/- 0.6 vs 0.0005 +/- 0.002 ng/mL; p < 0.001) concentrations were significantly higher in patients with cardiac failure compared to a control population of healthy volunteers. These results suggest that troponin I and troponin T may have valuable clinical applications in the biological monitoring of cardiac failure and the appreciation of its progression.