Biomarkers in Acute Pulmonary Embolism

Venous blood samples were collected on admission or at the moment of PE diagnosis, processed using standard operating procedures and immediately stored at −80°C. Plasma concentrations of hsTnI (ARCHITECT stat hsTnI assay, Abbott Laboratories, Chicago, IL, USA), hsTnT (Roche Diagnostics, Mannheim, Germany) and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP; Roche Diagnostics, Mannheim, Germany) were measured in batches after a single thaw by the amedes MVZ wagnerstibbe laboratory in Göttingen, Germany. For hsTnI, the following predefined cut-off values were investigated: 1) >10 pg·mL⁻¹ (lower detection limit of the assay); 2) >27 pg·mL⁻¹ (99th percentile in healthy individuals) [19 ]; 3) >16 pg·mL⁻¹ in women and >34 pg·mL⁻¹ in men (sex-specific 99th percentile in healthy individuals) [20 (link)]; and 4) >100 pg·mL⁻¹ (previously evaluated for risk stratification in acute PE) [12 (link)]. For other biomarkers, cut-off values indicating elevated concentrations were prospectively defined as hsTnT ≥14 pg·mL⁻¹ [18 (link)] and NT-proBNP ≥600 pg·mL⁻¹ [21 (link)]. Serial biomarker measurements were not performed.