title: Defining high-sensitivity cardiac troponin concentrations in the community.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  High-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) assays are now available that can detect measurable troponin in significantly more individuals in the general population than conventional assays. The clinical use of these hs-cTn assays depends on the development of proper reference values. Therefore, our objective was to define hs-cTnI reference values and determinants in the general community, in a healthy reference cohort, and in subsets with diseases.
  
  
  METHODS
  A well-characterized community-based cohort of 2042 study participants underwent clinical assessment and echocardiographic evaluation. Baseline hs-cTnI measurements were obtained in 1843 individuals. A healthy reference cohort (n = 565) without cardiac, renal, or echocardiographic abnormalities was identified.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Measurable hs-cTnI was identified in 1716 (93%) of the community-based study cohort and 499 (88%) of the healthy reference cohort. Parameters that significantly contributed to higher hs-cTnI concentrations in the healthy reference cohort included age, male sex, systolic blood pressure, and left ventricular mass. Glomerular filtration rate and body mass index were not independently associated with hs-cTnI in the healthy reference cohort. Individuals with diastolic and systolic dysfunction, hypertension, and coronary artery disease (but not impaired renal function) had significantly higher hs-cTnI values than the healthy reference cohort.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We assessed an hs-cTnI assay with the aid of echocardiographic imaging in a large, well-characterized community-based cohort. hs-cTnI is remarkably sensitive in the general population, and there are important sex and age differences among healthy reference individuals. These results have important implications for defining hs-cTnI reference values and identifying disease.
authors.affiliation: Cardiorenal Research Laboratory, Mayo Clinic and Foundation, Rochester, MN 55902, USA. mckie.paul@mayo.edu
authors.forename: Paul M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: McKie
authors.forename: Denise M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Heublein
authors.forename: Christopher G
authors.initials: CG
authors.lastname: Scott
authors.forename: Mary Lou
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Gantzer
authors.forename: Ramila A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Mehta
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Rodeheffer
authors.forename: Margaret M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Redfield
authors.forename: John C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Burnett
authors.forename: Allan S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Jaffe
mesh_terms: D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000097:blood; D003971:Diastole; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000097:blood; D017379:Hypertrophy, Left Ventricular / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values; D051437:Renal Insufficiency / Q000097:blood; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012737:Sex Factors; D019210:Troponin I / Q000097:blood*; D018487:Ventricular Dysfunction, Left / Q000097:blood / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D019210:Troponin I