Quantitative T-wave analysis predicts 1 year prognosis and benefit from early invasive treatment in the FRISC II study population

Early coronary angiography (CAG) has recently been established as standard therapy in high-risk patients with non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTE-ACS).(1,2) Several clinical and laboratory variables, of which troponins and ST-segment changes on ECG are the most important, are included in the risk stratification. However, we recently found that a quantitative T-wave analysis of the admission ECG based on a newly designed set of normal amplitude ranges for the T-wave could predict an adverse 30 day prognosis in a non-invasively treated NSTE-ACS population.(3) The objective of the present study was to assess whether quantitative T-wave analysis (in patients with or without ST-segment depression) may also provide information on which patients may benefit from early CAG. Furthermore, we sought, in an independent and larger population, to confirm our earlier findings on the predictive value of such analysis concerning clinical outcome in non-invasively treated NSTE-ACS patients.