Cardiac troponins in hypertension: mechanisms of increase and diagnostic value

Abstract

The understanding of the diagnostic and prognostic value of many biomarkers of cardiovascular diseases (CVD), including cardiac troponins (cTnT and cTnI), is changing significantly with the development of methods for their determination. New highly sensitive immunoassays can detect minimal concentrations of cardiac troponin protein molecules in biological fluids (several ng/L or less), allowing the detection of cTnT and cTnI in all healthy individuals. Along with this, there are opportunities to use cTnT and cTnI both to assess the risk of developing CVD in healthy people, and to identify and monitor many early pathological conditions that pose a risk to the cardiovascular system and the life of patients. These pathological conditions include hypertension (HTN), which is the direct cause leading to coronary heart disease, acute myocardial infarction, stroke, and other CVD. A number of recent studies reported the possibility of using highly sensitive cTnT and cTnI in the management of HTN patients. In this article, we consider in detail the diagnostic and prognostic value of cardiac troponins in HTN, we also discuss the main possible mechanisms underlying the increase in cTnT and cTnI in human body fluids.