Cardiac troponin I concentrations, but not electrocardiographic results, predict an extended hospital stay after coronary artery bypass graft surgery

Abstract

Background: Cardiac damage in coronary artery graft (CABG) surgery is an important contributor to postoperative cardiac dysfunction and delayed hospital discharge. Currently, no simple method exists for its quantification. Methods: In a prospective study of 300 patients having routine CABG surgery, we compared cardiac troponin I (cTnI) concentrations at 6 and 24 h after surgery with electrocardiographic (ECG) results as predictors of an extended postoperative stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) and in the hospital. We stratified outcome variables by tertiles of cTnI concentration and studied the significance of differences between outcome variables across tertiles. Results: Multivariate an..