Rakesh was a 52-year-old project manager, known for his long working hours and dedication. One afternoon at his office, he felt a sudden tightness in his chest. At first, he ignored it, thinking it was stress or acidity. But within minutes, the pain spread to his left arm, and he started sweating profusely. His colleagues noticed he looked pale and dizzy. Sensing something serious, they rushed him to the nearest hospital.

At the emergency department, doctors immediately suspected a heart attack and started a series of tests. An ECG was performed, but it did not show clear signs of myocardial infarction. Blood samples were taken to measure cardiac biomarkers. The initial tests for CK-MB and Myoglobin came back negative, which confused the clinical team. These markers often rise early, but they are not highly specific to the heart and can remain normal in some early or small heart attacks.

Rakesh’s symptoms, however, continued. The cardiologist decided to run a Troponin I test, the most specific marker for heart muscle injury on Newly bought CLIA Analyzer by INDO-MEDX . Within a few hours, the Troponin I levels came back significantly elevated. This confirmed that Rakesh was indeed having a non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). Immediate treatment was started, including antiplatelet therapy and coronary angiography, which revealed a blocked artery. A stent was placed, restoring blood flow and saving his life.

Troponin I was the key to Rakeshs’s survival. Unlike CK-MB and Myoglobin, which can rise due to skeletal muscle injury or may normalize quickly, Troponin I is highly specific to cardiac muscle and remains elevated for several days. High-sensitivity Troponin I assays can detect even very small heart injuries, enabling early and accurate diagnosis.

Rakesh recovered and returned to work with a new perspective on life. He often says, “That one test gave me a second chance.”

INDO-MEDX has kits available to detect Troponin I, providing rapid, sensitive, and reliable results for clinical and emergency care applications.

References

1. Boeddinghaus J et al., JAMA Cardiology, 2025.

2. Nseir M et al., BMC Cardiovascular Disorders, 2024.

3. Kulkarni SM et al., National Medical Journal of India, 2023.

4. Joshi HS et al., International Journal of Advances in Medicine, 2018.

5. Apple FS et al., Annals of Emergency Medicine, 2000.

6. Braunwald E et al., Circulation, American Heart Association.

7. ESC/ACC/AHA Universal Definition of Myocardial Infarction Guidelines.

8. Boehmer JP et al., Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC)