Cardiac Panel 1

More About Cardiac Panel 1

Cardiac biomarkers are proteins that are released when muscle cells are damaged. They are requested when patients have symptoms of acute coronary syndrome, such as chest pain, pain in the jaw, neck, abdomen, back, or that radiates to the shoulder or arms, nausea, breathlessness, and lightheadedness and constitute one part of the triage of assessing the aforementioned symptoms. The others being electrocardiographic investigation and the clinical presentation.

Total Cholesterol
Total cholesterol and it’s sub groups HDL, LDL and Triglycerides (TG) are used in evaluating heart disease risk.
These tests are useful in the assessment of healthy individuals as well as in patients who have heart disease or have other risk factors such as smoking, high blood pressure or diabetes. They are also used to monitor treatment with lipid lowering drugs.

Apolipoprotein A
Apolipoprotein A is the protein part of the lipoprotein that transport lipids in the blood. Apo-A helps activate enzymes that load cholesterol from tissues into HDL cholesterol molecules (also known as “good” cholesterol) that transport it to the liver and then secrete this excess cholesterol into bile.
Deficiencies in Apo A-I appear to correlate well with an increased risk of developing CHD and peripheral vascular disease.

Apolipoprotein B
Apolipoprotein A is the protein part of the lipoprotein that transport lipids in the blood. Apo B is recognised by receptors on the body's cellular surface which promote the uptake of cholesterol into the cells.
The cholesterol that LDL and apo B transport is a vital component of the membranes surrounding cells and for the production of several hormones. In excess, however, LDL can lead to the formation of fatty deposits (plaques) in artery walls and the hardening and scarring of blood vessels. These fatty deposits narrow the vessels in a process termed atherosclerosis which increases the risk of heart and vascular disease.

Lipoprotein(a)
Lp(a) is a risk factor for heart disease especially when LDL cholesterol is also raised. In the body, apolipoprotein (a) can interfere with blood clot formation and help LDL-C (“bad cholesterol”) molecules bind to artery walls. This accelerates the development of plaques within the wall, which can then narrow and harden the artery. This dual action may explain the role of Lp(a) in the promotion of cardiovascular disease.

Creatinine Kinase (CK)
Creatinine kinase serum levels are used to detect and monitor muscle damage and to help diagnose conditions associated with muscle damage. CK is an enzyme found in the heart, brain, skeletal muscle and other tissues. Increased amounts are released into the bloodstream when there is muscle damage.

hsCRP
C-reactive protein (CRP) is a protein in the blood that increases with inflammation. Atherosclerosis (fatty build-up in artery walls) is also an inflammatory process. However, the inflammation from atherosclerosis is a low level of long-term inflammation that produces only small amounts of CRP. Therefore, the test requires higher sensitivity than previous tests in order to detect the small increases of CRP. Thus, this test is known as high-sensitivity CRP or hs-CRP.

Homocysteine
Homocysteine plasma levels are related to cardiac risk and stroke assessment; It is advisable to measure serum folate and serum vitamin B12 as well when evaluating homocysteine levels.

Fibrinogen
Helps in the evaluation of your body's ability to form and break down blood clots. Fibrinogen may be used as a follow-up to an abnormal Prothrombin Time (PT) or activated Partial Prothrombin Time (aPTT, or PTT) and/or an episode of prolonged or unexplained bleeding. It may be measured, along with tests such as PT, aPTT, platelets, fibrin degradation products (FDP), and D-dimer to help diagnose disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). Sometimes fibrinogen is requested with other cardiac risk markers such as high sensitivity C-Reactive protein (hsCRP), to help determine a patient's overall risk of developing cardiovascular disease. This use of fibrinogen has not gained widespread acceptance though, because there are no direct treatments for elevated levels. However, some doctors feel fibrinogen measurements give them additional information that may lead them to be more aggressive in treating those risk factors that they can influence (such as cholesterol and HDL.

Uric acid
Uric acid is produced by the breakdown of nitrogen-containing compounds found in the body in substances such as nucleic acids (DNA, RNA). They enter the circulation from digestion of certain foods, drinks (alcoholic beverages like beer and wine) or from normal breakdown and turnover of cells in the body. Most uric acid is removed by the kidneys and disposed of in the urine.
Excess uric acid can cause the condition called gout – an inflammation that occurs in joints when crystals derived from uric acid form in the joint fluid. Excess uric acid can also lead to kidney disease, as a result of deposition in the kidneys or kidney stone formation, as a result of increased urinary excretion.

Thyroid-Stimulating Hormone (TSH), T3, T4
TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone, thyrotropin) blood test which screens for and diagnoses thyroid disorders; monitors treatment of hypothyroidism/hyperthyroidism.
T3 and T4 are hormones produced by the thyroid gland . The thyroid gland is found in the neck, in front of the windpipe. T3 makes up less than 10% of what we call thyroid hormone, while T4 makes up the rest. T3, however, is about four times as strong as T4, and is thought to cause most, if not all, the effects of thyroid hormones.
Thyroid hormones help regulate the body’s metabolism (how the body functions) and are also related to fertility.

Glucose
Blood glucose levels are also known as blood sugar.
Test is required if there are symptoms suggesting hyperglycaemia (high blood glucose) or hypoglycemia, or if you are diabetic. Also requested during pregnancy.

Glycosylated Haemoglobin (HbA1c)
Glycosylated haemoglobin. To aid diagnosis and monitor a person’s diabetes and to help treatment decisions.

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