Heart type fatty acid binding protein is more sensitive than troponin I and creatine kinase myocardial band at early stage in determining myocardial injury caused by percutaneous coronary intervention.

Measurement of circulating cardiac biomarkers has enabled early diagnosis and risk assessment of acute coronary syndrome. Heart type fatty acid binding protein (H-FABP) is a relatively novel marker for the diagnosis of myocardial injury. The purpose of the present study was to compare H-FABP with Troponin I (cTnI) and creatine kinase myocardial band (CK-MB) in determining myocardial injury in patients with early stage of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Blood was withdrawn one hour before and 3 hours after PCI from 40 patients to measure H-FABP, cTnI and CKMB. H-FABP was measured qualitatively. CK-MB and cTnI were measured by a sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Before PCI, H-FABP was found to be negative, while cTnI and CK-MB were found to be in normal ranges. Statistical analysis of measurements 3 hours after PCI revealed that H-FABP was significantly positive in 15 (37%) patients, while cTnI was elevated in 11 (27%) patients and CKMB was elevated in 8 (20%) patients. H-FABP is statistically more sensitive than cTnI and CK-MB at detecting myocardial injury after PCI.H-FABP can be used in early stages to detect myocardial injury caused by PCI. H-FABP is more sensitive than cTnI and CK-MB in determining myocardial injury due to PCI within 3 hours. H-FABP may help us stratify a patient's risk in early stages after PCI.