Questions posted in the Heart Forum have been answered by doctors from The Cleveland Clinic Foundation.

Question Title: Cardiac Enzymes

Forum: The Heart Forum
Topic: Heart Attack

During a checkup, my physician ordered blood work done and was very
concerned about the level of one of my cardiac enzymes. Sorry, I don't
remember which one it was. She thought that this high level was an
indicator of possible heart damage from a heart attack. She conferred
with another physician who said that the level was high but was still
within the acceptable high/low range. Is this anything that I should
be concerned about? Should I have the blood test repeated at a later
date? Thanks very much.


Dear Carolyn,

Thank you for your question. Cardiac enzymes are intracellular proteins that are released into the blood stream when there is damage to the heart muscle. The main enzymes checked are CK-MB, and troponin. They are used to help diagnosis heart attacks and determine amount of damage to the heart. An isolated elevation of CK in the absence of any symptoms probably does not represent heart damage.

I hope you find this information useful. Information provided in the heart forum is for general purposes only. Only your physician can provide specific diagnoses and therapies. Please feel free to write back with additional questions.

If you would like to make an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic Heart Center, please call 1-800-CCF-CARE or inquire online by using the Heart Center website at www.ccf.org/heartcenter. The Heart Center website contains a directory of the cardiology staff that can be used to select the physician best suited to address your cardiac problem.

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