[Influence of admission glucose level on long-term prognosis in patients with acute coronary syndrome]. / Influencia de la concentración de glucemia en el momento del ingreso en la evolución a largo plazo de los pacientes con síndrome coronario agudo.

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Hyperglycemia can increase the risk of death or a poor outcome following myocardial infarction. Our objective was to investigate the value of the admission glucose level in predicting long-term outcome in patients with acute coronary syndrome. METHODS: The study population comprised 565 patients admitted with acute coronary syndrome within 24 hours of the start of symptoms. The final diagnosis was myocardial infarction in 56% and unstable angina in 44%. RESULTS: The patients' mean glucose level was 143 (77) mg/dL. During follow-up (42 [6] months), 55 (9.7%) patients died. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the optimum cut point for predicting death from the glucose level was 0.67; the cut point was 128 mg/dL, with a sensitivity of 85% and a specificity of 62%. Patients were divided into 2 groups according to blood glucose level: in group 1 (36.8%), it was > or = 128 mg/dL; in group 2, <128 mg/dL. There were differences between the groups in the incidence of diabetes (47.2% vs 12.6%; P< .001), systolic blood pressure (138 [33] mm Hg vs 133 [33] mm Hg; P< .001), and ejection fraction (48.3 [0.9]% vs 55.2 [12.4]%; P=.004). At 4 years, the survival rates were 40% and 77% in groups 1 and 2, respectively (log rank test P< .001). The following were independent predictors of mortality: admission glucose level > or =128 mg/dL (hazard ratio [HR= 2.41; P=.021), admission systolic blood pressure (HR= 0.97; P< .001), admission troponin-T level (HR=4.88; P< .001), and the development of heart failure (HR=1.04; P=.001). A rise of 10 mg/dL in glucose level was associated with a 2.56-fold increase in the risk of death (P=.012). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with acute coronary syndrome, hyperglycemia at admission (cut point > or =128 mg/dL) was associated with increased long-term risk and, in addition, was a strong independent predictor of mortality.

Increased levels of cardiac troponin-T in outpatients with heart failure and preserved systolic function are related to adverse clinical findings and outcome.

BACKGROUND: The implications of increased levels of cardiac troponin T in congestive heart failure with preserved systolic function have been poorly evaluated. We hypothesized that its presence might be related to disease severity and prognosis in this setting. METHODS: Clinical, echocardiographic, 6-min walking test and laboratory data were prospectively obtained in 69 congestive heart failure outpatients with ejection fraction > or = 40%. Serial blood samples were assayed for cardiac troponin T with a third-generation immunoassay and values > or = 0.02 ng/ml were considered abnormal. RESULTS: Abnormal cardiac troponin T levels in at least one sample were found in 27 patients (39%, group 1). These patients were older (71.7 +/- 11 vs. 63 +/- 12.4 years, P = 0.002); more frequently hospitalized during the previous year (63 vs. 26.2%, P = 0.003), had lower systolic blood pressure (129.3 +/- 19.6 vs. 140.4 +/- 23.5 mmHg, P = 0.04), but had similar proportion of ischemic etiology (55.6 vs. 42.9%, P = 0.21) than those with normal cardiac troponin T (group 2). In groups 1 and 2, the functional class was 2.8 +/- 0.8 and 2.1 +/- 0.9 (P = 0.03), and the distance covered in 6 min was 339 +/- 100 and 386 +/- 103 m (P = 0.05), respectively. In groups 1 and 2, the 18-month congestive heart failure hospitalization-free survival was 22 and 87%, respectively (log-rank test P = 0.0003). In a Cox-proportional hazard model, functional class III-IV (hazard ratio = 5.21, 95% confidence interval: 1.43-18.96) and myocardial injury (hazard ratio = 5.51, confidence interval: 1.58-19.24) were independently associated with prognosis. CONCLUSION: Increased levels of cardiac troponin T were detected in one out of three congestive heart failure outpatients with preserved systolic function and correlated with clinical measures of disease severity and poor outcome. These findings suggest a link between ongoing myocardial injury and progressive impairment in congestive heart failure despite preserved systolic function.