Cardiac troponin I is released following high-intensity short-duration exercise in healthy humans.

It has been previously shown that cardiac troponin (cTn) is released in response to prolonged endurance exercise. The influence of short-duration high-intensity exercise upon the release of cTn is not known. We examined cardiac troponin I (cTnI) release pre-, during and post-30 min of high-intensity running exercise in eight recreationally active males (age 29±3 years; VO2peak 53±11 ml kg min(-1)). Following exercise, cTnI increased in six of the eight participants. Four participants showed a minimal response (<0.05 µg/l) post-exercise. In contrast, two participants showed a progressive increase in cTnI (>0.1 µg/l) following exercise which peaked 3-4 h post-exercise. cTnI returned below the detection limit of the assay in all bar one of the participants 24 h post-exercise. These data are the first to show that cTnI can be released following short-duration high-intensity exercise. Clinicians should be aware that exercise-induced release of cTnI is not limited to prolonged endurance activity.