What is the utility of troponins for diagnosis of ACS?
Cardiac troponins are the mainstay for diagnosis of ACS and for risk stratification in patients with ACS. The primary diagnostic biomarkers of myocardial necrosis are cardiac troponin I and cardiac troponin T. Features that favor troponins for detection of ACS include high concentrations of troponins in the myocardium; virtual absence of troponins in nonmyocardial tissue; high-release ratio into the systemic circulation (amount found in blood relative to amount depleted from myocardium); rapid release into the blood in proportion to the extent of myocardial injury; and the ability to quantify values with reproducible, inexpensive, rapid, and easily applied assays.