• Karthik Viswanathan, Niamh Kilcullen, Christine Morrell, Sue J Thistlethwaite, Mohan U Sivananthan, Tajek B Hassan, Julian H Barth, and Alistair S Hall.
• C-NET Group, Multidisciplinary Cardiovascular Research Centre, The LIGHT Institute, University of Leeds, Leeds, United Kingdom.
• J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. 2010 Jun 8; 55 (23): 2590-8.

ObjectivesThe purpose of this study was to establish the prognostic value of measuring heart fatty acid-binding protein (H-FABP) in patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome (ACS) (in particular, low- to intermediate-risk patients), in addition to troponin measured with the latest third-generation troponin assay.BackgroundWe have previously shown that H-FABP is a useful prognostic marker in patients with proven ACS.MethodsPatients (n = 1,080) consecutively admitted to the hospital with suspected ACS were recruited over 46 weeks. Siemens Advia Ultra-TnI (Siemens Healthcare Diagnostics, Newbury, United Kingdom) and Randox Evidence H-FABP (Randox Laboratories, Ltd., Co., Antrim, United Kingdom) were analyzed on samples collected 12 to 24 h from symptom onset. After exclusion of patients with ST-segment elevation and new left bundle branch block, 955 patients were included in the analysis.ResultsThe primary outcome measure of death or readmission with myocardial infarction after a minimum follow-up period of 12 months (median 18 months) occurred in 96 of 955 patients (10.1%). The H-FABP concentration was an independent predictor of death or myocardial infarction, after multivariate adjustment. Patients with H-FABP concentrations >6.48 microg/l had significantly increased risk of adverse events (adjusted hazard ratio: 2.62, 95% confidence interval: 1.30 to 5.28, p = 0.007). Among troponin-negative patients (which constituted 79.2% of the cohort), the aforementioned cutoff of 6.48 microg/l identified patients at very high risk for adverse outcomes independent of patient age and serum creatinine.ConclusionsWe have demonstrated that the prognostic value of elevated H-FABP is additive to troponin in low- and intermediate-risk patients with suspected ACS. Other studies suggest that our observations reflect the value of H-FABP as a marker of myocardial ischemia, even in the absence of frank necrosis.Copyright 2010 American College of Cardiology Foundation. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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