Implementation of myocardial perfusion imaging in the early triage of patients with suspected acute coronary syndromes

The risk of overlooking an underlying acute coronary syndrome remains an important challenge in patients complaining of chest pain but who have a non-diagnostic ECG (CP). Indeed, myocardial scintigraphy associated with exercise testing (exercise SPET) represents a valuable tool for excluding coronary artery disease (CAD) especially in patients with CP and delayed presentation to the emergency department. We sought to implement diagnoses of CAD in the early triage of CP patients by exercise gated SPET and compare diagnoses with outcomes. A total of 306 consecutive patients presenting with CP were found to be free of CAD at first line work-up including clinical evaluation, markers of myocardial injury and echocardiogram. These patients were studied initially with exercise SPET, and those with perfusion defects underwent angiography, while those with normal scans were discharged and followed up. Patients with positive scans (34%, n = 105) had documented coronary stenoses in 43% (n = 45); patients with negative scans (66%, n = 201) had evidence of non-fatal coronary events at 6 months in 1.5% (n = 3). When imaging was analysed with gating by the presence of transmural perfusion defects associated with wall motion abnormalities (n = 86), only one patient, among 19 excluded, was recognized as having coronary stenosis by angiography (SPET vs gated SPET: negative predictive value 98.5% and 98%, respectively, P = NS; diagnostic accuracy 79% and 85%, respectively; P less than or equal to 0.03). Therefore, implementation of myocardial perfusion imaging in the early triage of patients with suspected acute coronary syndromes was effectively obtained by early exercise gated SPET, especially in patients with transmural myocardial perfusion defects associated with wall motion abnormalities. ((C) 2003 Lippincott Williams Wilkins).