Cardiac marker point-of-care testing in the Emergency Department and Cardiac Care Unit

There has been much interest in improving the accuracy and speed with which chest pain patients presenting to the emergency department are diagnosed and treated. Recently, attention has been directed toward alternative site or point-of-care testing for biochemical markers of myocardial cell necrosis in addition to traditional diagnostic methodologies. The various point-of-care cardiac marker devices available and their potential applications are discussed. Regulatory and quality management issues related of point-of-care testing are reviewed.