Troponin to risk stratify patients for CTCA
Research type
Research Study
Full title
troPonin within the noRmal refErenCe range to rIsk Stratify patients with acute chEst pain for Computed Tomography Coronary Angiography (PRECISE-CTCA)
IRAS ID
245971
Contact name
Kuan Ken Lee
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Edinburgh
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
Most patients presenting to hospital with chest pain are discharged home without further tests once a heart attack has been ruled out. Current strategies to assess patients with a suspected heart attack involve blood tests to measure troponin, a protein released into the bloodstream when the heart muscle is damaged. Despite having had a heart attack ruled-out, some patients have unrecognised coronary heart disease and are at risk of having a heart attack in the future. However, we do not know what is the best approach to identify and treat these patients.
This study will use a heart scan known as computed tomography coronary angiogram (CTCA) to look for underlying coronary heart disease in patients who have had a heart attack ruled out. In an earlier study, we performed this scan in patients referred to the outpatient cardiology clinic with stable chest pain and found that this improved the diagnosis of coronary heart disease, leading to improvement in patient care that prevented many future heart attacks. Our research has also demonstrated that troponin levels below the threshold used to diagnose a heart attack identify those who are at greater risk of having a heart attack in the future. The aim of this study is to confirm whether these low levels of troponin can identify patients who have underlying coronary heart disease and may benefit from further testing and preventative treatment.
REC name
South East Scotland REC 01
REC reference
18/SS/0114
Date of REC Opinion
18 Oct 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion