ACS - Risk Stratification
Likelihood That Signs/Symptoms represent ACS 2/2 CAD
| Feature | High Likelihood (any of the following) | Intermediate Likelihood (absence of high-likelihood features and presence of any of the following) | Low Likelihood (absence of high- or intermediate-likelihood features but may have) |
|---|---|---|---|
| History | Chest or left arm pain or discomfort as chief symptom reproducing prior documented angina | Chest or left arm pain or discomfort as chief symptom | Probable ischemic symptoms in absence of any of the intermediate-likelihood characteristics |
| Known history of coronary artery disease, including myocardial infarction | Age >70 y old | Recent cocaine use | |
| Male sex | |||
| Diabetes mellitus | |||
| Examination | Transient mitral regurgitation murmur, hypotension, diaphoresis, pulmonary edema, or rales | Extracardiac vascular disease | Chest discomfort reproduced by palpation |
| ECG | New, or presumably new, transient ST-segment deviation (1 mm or greater) or T-wave inversion in multiple precordial leads | Fixed Q waves | T-wave flattening or inversion <1 mm in leads with dominant R waves |
| ST depression 0.5–1.0 mm or T-wave inversion >1 mm | |||
| Normal ECG | |||
| Cardiac markers | Elevated cardiac troponin I, troponin T, or MB fraction of creatine kinase | Normal | Normal |
Short-Term Risk of Death or Nonfatal Myocardial Infarction by Risk Stratification in Patients with Unstable Angina
| Feature | High Likelihood (at least one of the following features must be present) | Intermediate Likelihood (no high-risk feature, but must have one of the following) | Low Likelihood (no high- or intermediate-risk feature, but may have any of the following) |
|---|---|---|---|
| History | Accelerating tempo of ischemic symptoms in preceding 48 h | Prior myocardial infarction, peripheral or cerebrovascular disease, or coronary artery bypass grafting; prior aspirin use | — |
| Character of the pain | Prolonged ongoing (>20 min) rest pain | Prolonged (>20 min) rest angina, now resolved, with moderate or high likelihood of CAD | Increased angina frequency, severity, or duration |
| Rest angina (>20 min) or relieved with rest or sublingual nitroglycerin | Angina provoked at a lower threshold | ||
| New-onset angina with onset 2 wk to 2 mo before presentation | |||
| Nocturnal angina | |||
| New-onset or progressive Canadian Cardiology Society Class III or IV angina (Table 53-0.1) in the past 2 wk without prolonged (>20 min) rest pain but with intermediate or high likelihood of CAD (Table 53-2) | |||
| Clinical findings | Pulmonary edema, most likely due to ischemia | Age >70 y old | Chest discomfort reproduced by palpation |
| New or worsening mitral regurgitation murmur | |||
| S3 or new/worsening rales | |||
| Hypotension, bradycardia, tachycardia | |||
| Age >75 y old | |||
| ECG | Angina at rest with transient ST-segment changes >0.5 mm | T-wave changes, pathologic Q waves, or resting ST depression <1 mm in multiple lead groups (anterior, inferior, lateral) | Normal or unchanged ECG |
| Bundle-branch block, new or presumed new | |||
| Sustained ventricular tachycardia | |||
| Cardiac markers | Elevated cardiac TnT, TnI, or CK-MB (e.g., TnT or TnI >0.1 nanogram/mL) | Slightly elevated cardiac TnT, TnI, or CK-MB (e.g., TnT >0.01 but <0.1 nanogram/mL) | Normal |
Source:
2007 ACC/AHA Guidelines for the Management of Patients with UA/NSTEMI
