The impact of high-sensitivity troponin implementation on hospital operations and patient outcomes in 3 tertiary care centers.

OBJECTIVE: High-sensitivity troponin T (hs-TnT) assays detect myocardial injury sooner, possibly improving throughput times for emergency department (ED) assessment of suspected acute myocardial infarction (AMI). This study evaluates the influence of hs-TnT implementation on ED length of stay (LOS), consultations and admissions, as well as ED revisits with cardiology admissions for patients undergoing testing for suspected AMI. METHODS: This control pre-post design analysis included patients evaluated using hs-TnT or conventional troponin T. Data were collected from 3 ED databases for patients who had a troponin assay for suspected AMI for the periods February 12, 2011-April 22, 2011 (Ctrl); November 20, 2011-January 28, 2012 (Pre); and February 12, 2012-April 21, 2012 (Post). The primary outcome was ED LOS; secondary outcomes included the proportions of patients who received ED cardiology consultations, patients who were admitted to hospital, and discharged patients who revisited the ED within 30 days. RESULTS: Data were analyzed from 6650 (Ctrl), 6866 (Pre), and 5754 (Post) patients. Median ED LOS decreased following hs-TnT implementation (6.60 hours in Ctrl and Pre vs 6.10 hours in Post, P < .001). There was no change in cardiology consultations or admissions following hs-TnT implementation. Fewer ED revisits occurred within 30 days in Post (16.0% Ctrl, 16.5% Pre vs 14.9% Post; P < .01). These results were preserved after adjusting for age and Canadian Triage Acuity Score. CONCLUSIONS: This hs-TnT implementation strategy, using an equivalent cutoff for the conventional troponin T and hs-TnT assays, decreased ED LOS for patients with suspected AMI and did not increase cardiology resource utilization or ED revisits.

Expedited transfer for primary percutaneous coronary intervention: a program evaluation.

BACKGROUND: A shorter time from symptom onset to reperfusion is associated with improved outcomes for patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (MI). Primary percutaneous coronary intervention is a favourable method of reperfusion if performed effectively and expeditiously. We sought to evaluate the impact of an expedited pre-hospital diagnosis and transfer pathway developed by a multidisciplinary team on the door-to-balloon time in a large urban community. METHODS: We included all patients with ST-segment elevation MI who presented within 12 hours after symptom onset and who sought medical attention through Emergency Medical Services within the boundaries of the city of Calgary in the 16 months following the introduction of the pathway in June 2004. The primary aim was to determine the proportion of patients who received percutaneous coronary intervention within the recommended door-to-balloon time of 90 minutes. RESULTS: The 358 patients (268 men) in the study cohort had a mean age of 63.2 (standard deviation 12.7) years; 140 (39.1%) had an anterior MI; and 23 (6.4%) had cardiogenic shock. The introduction of the pathway resulted in a median door-to-balloon time of 62 (interquartile range 45-84) minutes. A door-to-balloon time within 60 minutes and within the currently recommended 90 minutes was achieved in 48.9% and 78.8% of the patients respectively. The in-hospital and 30-day mortality rates were both 3.1%. INTERPRETATION: In a community with multiple regional hospitals and a single facility for percutaneous coronary intervention, the implementation of a multidisciplinary pre-hospital diagnosis and transfer pathway was feasible and resulted in most patients in the study cohort receiving primary percutaneous coronary intervention within the recommended door-to-balloon time of 90 minutes.