Post-exercise high-sensitivity troponin T levels in patients with suspected unstable angina.

BACKGROUND:Previous studies showed that troponin blood levels may increase after exercise. In this study we assessed whether, among patients admitted with suspected unstable angina, the increase in high-sensitive troponin T (hs-TnT) levels after exercise stress test (EST) might help identify those with obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD) and predict symptom recurrence during short term follow-up. METHODS:Maximal treadmill EST was performed in 69 consecutive patients admitted to the emergency room with a suspicion of unstable angina (acute chest pain but confirmed normal serum levels of cardiac troponins) was measured before and 4 hours after EST. Coronary angiography was performed in 22 patients (32.8%). RESULTS:hs-TnT increased after EST compared to baseline in the whole population (from 0.84±0.65 to 1.17±0.87 ng/dL, p