Comparison of low troponin I results in a commutable EQA program

Abstract

The RCPAQAP provides a Liquid Serum Chemistry Program sourced from consenting male and female haemochromatosis patients presenting for therapeutic venesection. Where possible, serum from individual male and female patients are pooled over successive collections. The option to report Troponin I and T was introduced in the 2022 program. We sought to review the performance at low Troponin I levels across 10 instruments from five vendors, and Troponin T for four Roche instruments. Methods: The median results for each platform submitted by to 151 participating laboratories for the November 2022 survey were compared using RCPAQAP inhouse software. Results: The Troponin I Instrument medians for the male sample ranged from 2 to 6 ng/L, with an all-result median of 3ng/L (n=151). The female sample ranged from 2 to 11ng/L, with an all-result median of 4ng/L (n=151). The all results medians for the male and female samples were the same for Troponin T: 6ng/L (n=39), and only varied by +/-1ng/L across the five platforms. Discussion: While this study is limited, it does demonstrate comparable results at low levels across five major vendors. Differences in decision points currently in use may warrant review as recent studies on low levels of troponin may potentially change clinical management.