Renal Consult
Do PPIs Pose a Danger to Kidneys?
The increased sensitivity of troponin testing can make interpretation difficult and stressful. When should you suspect myocardial injury in your...
The American College of Cardiology Foundation task force found that monitoring changes in troponin concentration over time (3-6 h) is more accurate than a single elevated troponin when diagnosing AMI in symptomatic patients.3 Correlation between elevated troponin levels and clinical suspicion proved helpful in determining the significance of troponin results and the probability of AMI in patients with CKD.2
The significance and interpretation of elevated troponin levels in patients with CKD remains an important topic for further study, as cardiovascular disease continues to be the leading cause of mortality in patients with kidney dysfunction.1,2 More definitive studies need to be conducted on patients with CKD as high-sensitivity troponin assay testing becomes standard for diagnosing AMI.
So, the reason you see more positive troponin results in your CKD population is due to both the increased accuracy of the newer tests and the fact that CKD often causes a false-positive result. Monitoring your patients with serial troponins for at least three hours is essential to confirm or rule out an AMI. —MS-G
Marlene Shaw-Gallagher, MS, PA-C
University of Detroit Mercy, Michigan
Division of Nephrology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor