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New research shows how doctors can improve the timing of surgery for some heart attack patients by analyzing the levels of a particular protein. Troponin is a protein involved in muscle contraction that is released into the bloodstream after a heart attack. Clinicians use troponin levels, along with other tests, to determine whether a patient is having a heart attack and to decide on treatment options such as coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. In the study, researchers found that some patients who have lower levels of troponin would benefit from having earlier surgery. However, the researchers show that patients...

After being anesthetized and undergoing major surgery, up to one in five patients have increased levels of the protein troponin in their blood. This can be a sign of heart damage. Researchers have analyzed data from before and after the operations of 1,300 patients. The study was focused on leakage of the protein troponin to the blood. This is a biomarker found in blood samples from patients with cardiac muscle damage. This kind of damage is, in turn, associated with cardiovascular disease or heart attacks—Major Adverse Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Events (MACCE). An increase in troponin is also common in patients...

Reviewed by Zalman S. Agus, MD; Emeritus Professor University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine. Action Points   New, extremely sensitive assays for circulating troponin levels allow detection of low levels which may reflect chronic sources of myocardial injury and may predict long-term heart failure. This study found an association between low levels of troponin and HbA1c in individuals free of evident coronary heart disease and heart failure. A highly sensitive troponin test revealed evidence of subclinical heart damage in patients with hyperglycemia but no known coronary artery disease or heart failure, with particularly high enzyme levels in those with diabetes, according to a...