Cardiac Labs and Imaging Flashcards
What EKG changes could indicate signs of a pathological heart?
1) Decreased Ejection Fraction
2) Valve abnormalities
3) Wall motion abnormalities
4) Increased Pulmonary artery pressure
What is Pulsus paradoxus?
A drop in systolic pressure by more than 10 mmHg during inspiration due to increased pressure in the thoracic compartment
What is Pulsus alterans?
When the pulse alternates in amplitude from beat to beat when the rhythm is normal
What may a Pulsus alterans indicate?
LV failure
According to the NY Heart Association guidelines, what are the 4 steps to approach a cardiac patient
1) Determine the underlying etiology
2) Determine if an Anatomic abnormality is present
3) Determine if a physiological disturbance is present (arrythmia, CHF, MI)
4) Determine if a Functional disability is present (can patient perform strenuous tasks
What are Cardiac labs unique to the CVS?
1) BNP
2) CK isoenzymes
3) Troponin
4) LDH
5) AST
6) Lipid panel
What is BNP?
Brain natriuretic peptide, a hormone produced by the ventricles of the heart that increases in response to ventricular volume expansion and pressure overload
When is getting a BNP ab particularly useful?
1) As a marker for ventricular dysfunction (but can’t determine btwn systolic and diastolic dysfunction)
2) Useful in diagnosing ans assessing severity of CHF (especially in the ER where chest pain is a common presentation)
What are the normal and abnormal levels of a BNP lab?
Normal is less than 100pg/mL or 100ng/L
If over 400 pg/d is a high predictive value for CHF
What is CK (Creatine kinase)
An enzyme found in the heart and skeletal muscle and the brain that indicates when there is damage/injury to these muscles/nerve cells
When will you see a rise in CK levels?
They rise usually within 6 hours after damage. If the damage is not persistent, the levels peak at 18 hours after injury and return to normal in 2-3 days.
What is Total CK
The combined level of all of the CK enzymes (isoenzymes)
What are the 3 CK isoenzymes and where are they found
1) CK-BB - predominantly in the brain and lung
2) CK-MB - myocardial cells (trace in skeletal muscle
3) CK-MM - more specific to skeletal muscle
When will you see a rise in CK-BB isoenzymes?
In the setting of a CVA/stroke, brain cancer, seizure, lung cancer, pulm infarction, subarachnoid hemorrhage
When will you see a rise in CK-MM isoenzymes?
During injury to skeletal muscle (trauma, myopathies, strenuous exercise, surgery, etc)
When will you see a rise in CK-MB isoenzymes? (large, small, no rise)
Rise in patients with shock, myopathies or myocarditis. Mild elevation in people with unstable angina and severe skeletal muscle trauma. No rise for transient chest pain caused by stable angina, PE or CHF
When is checking CK-MB levels most useful
It helps to quantify the severity of an MI as well as determining it’s onset.
Also useful in determining the appropriateness of thrombolytic therapy for an MI (high levels = a more severe MI has occurred and thromboyltics would not be indicated
What is myoglobin and what does it indicate?
A proteins found in cardiac and skeletal muscle that provides an early index of damage to the myocardium (d/t MI or reinfarction)
What is the difference btwn CK and myoglobin?
Myoglovin is more sensitive than CPK isoenzymes, but not as specific. Also myoglobin rises earlier (2-3 vs 6-9 hours) and peaks earlier (6-9 vs 12-18 hours)
What is Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and what does it indicate
An intracellular enzyme found in the kidney, heart, skeletal muscle, brain, liver and lungs. An increase indicates cellular death and leakage of enzyme from the cell.
Elevated levels of LDH are_____
non-specific
When would you see high levels of LDH?
In pulmonary infarction, CHF, liver disease, cancer, hypothyroidism, lung and skeletal diseases, certain anemias, seizure, shock, hyperthermia, CNS disease, renal infarct, strenuous exercise, childbirth etc
How long does it take to see a rise in LDH levels?
High levels will occur in 36-55 hours after an MI and continue longer than elevations of AST/SGOT and CPK
What does NOT produces elevations of LDH?
Angina and pericarditis
What is troponins?
Proteins that are present in skeletal and cardiac muscle that regulate the Ca+ dependent interaction of myosin with actin for muscle contraction
What are the three types of troponins and what do they bind to?
1) Troponin C - binds to Ca+
2) Troponin T - binds to tropmyosin
3) Troponin I - binds to actin and inhibits actin/myosin interactions
Which troponins are unique to the cardiac muscle
Troponin T and troponin I
When is troponin released after injury and how long before it returns to normal?
Released 1-3 hours . Returns to normal in 5-7 days
How is Troponin T and I different thank CK-MB
Troponin I remains increased longer than CK-MB and is more cardiac specific
Troponin T - more sensitive but less specific (will be positive w/angina at rest
What is the preferred test to diagnose MI
Troponin - can use to early diagnose small MI that are undetectable by conventional diagnostic methods. Also can be used later in the course because it can remain elevated for 5-7 days
How do you test for troponin
Do it by serial sampling since a single sample can be misleading. So test at 0,4.8. and 12 hours after chest pain to r/o acute MI
What may a positive troponin T level indicate?
Acute MI, postsurgical MI, unstable angina, myocarditis, CRF, rhabdomyolsis, and polymyositis
When is a troponin T level test not useful
For reinfarction since levels will still be elevated due to the first MI event.
What is AST and what does it indicate?
Asparate Transamine or Aminotransferase or SGOT, an enzyme present in the tissues of high metabolic activity (heart, liver, skeletal muscle, brain). It’s released inot the blood following injury or cell death. The amount of AST in the blood is directly related to number of damaged cells
When and for how long will you see elevated levels of AST?
About 12 hours after severe cell death and reach its peak in 24 hours. It will remain elevated for about 5 days.
Increased levels of AST occur in _____
an MI
Secondary rises in AST suggest what?
an extension or reoccurrence of MI
Outside of MI’s what are some other reasons you may see a rise in AST?
(liver disease (cirrhosis, hepatitis), trauma and irradiation to skeletal muscle. brain trauma and stroke, MD, PE/lung infarct, shock