Minneapolis, Minn. — According to recent data compiled by the American Heart Association, hospital recorded 733,000 discharges with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in 2006.¹  Diagnosing ACS in the emergency department is problematic, often requiring prolonged observation and stress testing.  Today, Dr. James Udelson will present results from a multicenter study that show the addition of BMIPP data to available clinical information can aid early diagnosis of ACS in the emergency department. 

Read the Abstract (PDF)
 
Iodofilitic acid I 123 (BMIPP) SPECT detects recent abnormalities in fatty acid metabolism resulting from myocardial ischemia, even many hours after symptom cessation.  Investigators found that adding BMIPP data to the information gleaned from an initial clinical diagnosis led to significant increases in sensitivity, negative predictive value, and positive predictive value.

This study enrolled 510 emergency department patients from 50 centers nationwide.  Patients received 5 mCi BMIPP during symptoms or within 30 hours of symptom cessation in chest pain-free patients.  Initial clinical diagnosis was based on symptoms, initial ECGs and troponin.  Final diagnosis used all data (except BMIPP SPECT), including angiography and stress SPECT.  Final diagnoses were adjudicated by a blinded committee into Definite ACS or Definite/Probable ACS, or negative for ACS, based on all available information without BMIPP imaging data.  Efficacy was evaluated in the 448 patients who had complete data. 

Dr. James Udelson presents this study, “Iodofilitic Acid I 123 (BMIPP) Fatty Acid Imaging Improves Initial Diagnosis in Emergency Department Patients with Suspected Acute Coronary Syndromes: A Multicenter Trial” Saturday, October 3, 2009 in Room M100 F-G.

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The American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) is the leader in education, advocacy, and quality for the field of nuclear cardiology.  Serving more than 5,000 individuals in over 50 countries, ASNC is the only professional association dedicated to the dynamic subspecialty of nuclear cardiology.

¹American Heart Association. Heart Disease and Stroke Statistics — 2009.