Using troponin T to diagnose acute coronary syndromes

Abstract

Elevated troponin T is a useful marker for acute myocardial infarction: it is more specific than is elevated creatine kinase MB isoenzyme, and it remains elevated for many days after creatine kinase levels have returned to normal, providing a useful indicator for late presentations. Nevertheless, creatine kinase MB still has many important roles, including providing estimates of infarct size and diagnosing acute myocardial infarction in patients with renal failure. Often, measuring both markers provides additional information. This article provides a diagnostic algorithm for using both markers.