Several tests have been developed to determine heart attack risks, some of which have been successful. Still, new tests are being developed, with the latest being a blood test used to determine whether the patient has had a blood attack. However, researchers have noted that the existing blood tests have shortcomings in deciding whether the patient has had an attack.
Determining the weakness in the heart attack blood test
Proteins such as troponin were measured in these tests, and one in twenty cases showed surprising results. The blood test was conducted on 20,000 patients; out of which it was discovered that 5% of the patients had higher levels of the protein troponin that the minimum required by the proponent of the test.
The results were shocking as a more significant number of the patients had been admitted with other conditions and had no other medical signs of heart attacks, though some factors such as sex, age, and whether the person was an outpatient or inpatient also had more significant impacts on troponin levels in their samples. However, some higher levels of troponin were attributed to poor diagnosis from cardiologists. However, one of the leading researchers warned cardiologists to be careful in interpreting the troponin levels.
The researchers also warned that misdiagnosis of patients as having suffered a heart attack when, in the real sense, they had not experienced it is against medical ethics. Further, this could lead to administration of wrong treatments, which could be more detrimental to the patient’s health.
According to recent guidelines, troponin tests have been included for diagnosing and ruling out a heart attack in patients. However, the test should only be used with the upper limits of the traditional (“UNL”) upper limit based on hundreds of healthy individuals’ figures. The procedure is known as the 99th percentile; any individual who has a scoring beyond it is suspected of having had an attack. The new research has detected flaws in that percentile system.
One of the researchers has also highlighted that troponin is the most commonly used method in determining patients who have previously suffered from heart attacks. It is because the protein is usually released from the heart, especially when damaged.
Besides, the heart can also release troponin when the person is suffering from other conditions apart from the heart attacks. The study on the new testing method is putting a lot of emphasis that not all positive cases should be assumed as being due to heart attacks; other underlying factors should also be considered before a patient is diagnosed with a heart attack.
It would be interesting to hear what biomedical companies like LexaGene Holdings Inc. (TSX.V: LXG) (OTCQB: LXXGF) recommend as additional safeguards to prevent the misdiagnosis of possible heart attacks.
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