Diagnostic Value of the Triage(R) Cardiac System for Acute Myocardial Infarction: Comparison with Established Devices

Lee, Sang Lae; Kim, Mi Ran; Rho, Jun Young; Ryu, Seok Yong; Kim, Hong Yong; Kim, Sung Jun

Abstract

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study is to evaluate the diagnostic value of the Triage(R) Cardiac System (Biosite, USA) for quantitative detection of acute myocardial infarction.
METHODS
During a three-month period, we prospectively studied the cases of patients who visited the emergency department (ED) with suspicious acute ischemic chest pain. With the exclusion of patients with stable angina (according to ACC/AHA guideline) and non-cardiogenic chest pain, a total of 20 patients were studied. We evaluated the sensitivity and the specificity of the Triage(R) Cardiac System, and we compared the results with those from an established device (Elecsys(R) 1010, Boehringer Mannheim, Germany) by using a Pearson correlation and the student t-test.
RESULTS
The mean operating time of the Triage(R) Cardiac System was faster than that of the established device (16 +/- 1.2 min vs 30+/-0.6 min). The sensitivity and the specificity were same for the two devices. The sensitivity and the specificity of CK-MB were 63.6% and 88.9% respectively, and those of cardiac troponin were 54.5% and 100%. In the evaluation of patients who arrived at the ED after 4 hours of symptom onset, the sensitivity and the specificity were high. The Pearson correlation of CK-MB between the two devices was significant (r=0.970, p<0.01). The CK-MB values of acute myocardial infarction were significantly different with unstable angina (Triage(R) Cardiac System: t = 2.857 p = 0.017; Elecsys(R) 1010: t = 2.804 p = 0.018).
CONCLUSION
The Triage(R) Cardiac System is a good diagnostic device for acute myocardial infarction, and its fast reporting of the result and its ease to use in the ED are superior to those of the established device.