POCT/ Point-of-Care Tests: D-Dimer and Troponin - Update 2024
Project leaders: Claudia Wild
Project team: Judit Erdös, Claudia Wild
Mirjana Huic (first author, HTA/EBM Center, Croatia)
Duration: 02/2024 – 07/2024
Language: English (with German Summary)
Background:
Point-of-care tests (POCTs) are diagnostic tests that are performed near patients rather than in central laboratories. POCTs provide rapid feedback of test results potentially enabling faster decisions about patient management. Both sampling and data analysis are performed at the same site, reducing transport and processing delays. In recent decades, there has been a steady increase in both the availability and use of POCTs. The trend was associated with both hopes (regarding benefits over laboratory testing) and concerns (regarding the overall benefit, potential over-diagnosis, and reliability) of such tests.
In recent years, two biomarkers have, among others, been used as POC diagnostics: determination of D-dimers in patients with symptoms of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE) and troponin, which can be used in patients with suspected coronary heart disease or myocardial infarction.
However, POCTs may only be useful if they bring about a positive change in patient management. For reasons of cost-effectiveness, for example, it would not make sense to use them only as "add-ons" without a real change in the diagnostic or therapeutic pathway. Therefore, it is essential to identify the diagnostic context for acute coronary syndrome Tn and DVT/PE and thus the potential benefits of using these POCTs.
Project objectives: The policy question is whether emergency care referrals, hospital admissons or further tests can be avoided by using the two POC diagnostics (D-dimer and troponin). While many studies on POCTs deal with the analytical performance (diagnostic accuracy) of these tests, studies on the impact on clinical (triage) decisions and on patient-relevant endpoints are much rarer. This project aims at answering the following
Research questions:
- RQ 1: What are the clinical benefits of D-dimer POCT in the management of symptomatic patients (adults)?
- RQ 2: What are the clinical benefits of Tn-POCT in the management of symptomatic patients (adults)?
Methods: To answer RQ 1+2, two separate systematic reviews on the patient-relevant benefits of POC diagnostics will be carried out.
Inclusion criteria (PICO) for (high-sensitivity) cardiac Tn-POCT
Population |
Adult patients >=18 years with signs and or symptoms such as chest pain or breathlessness that are potentially indicative of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and acute myocardial infarction, presenting in primary care (general practice, internal medicine or pulmonology in private practice) and has not been ruled out. Specific high-risk groups of patients will be excluded. Emergency care will be excluded. MeSH-terms: acute coronary syndrome, myocardial infarction, unstable angina pectoris, cardiac troponin. ICD-10: I20-I24 |
Intervention |
Point of care tests (POCT) high-sensitivity cardiac troponin POC products that are available on the market such as:
with the intention to rule-out the acute disease. |
Comparison |
All comparators will be included. For the impact of POCT on patient management, usual care (incl. central laboratory methods) will be used. In the diagnostic performance testing, reference standard tests are likely to include angiography and laboratory testing (as opposed to the near-patient testing devices). |
Outcomes |
Effectiveness/clinical utility in patient-management:
Safety: AEs, SAEs Diagnostic accuracy :
*MACE is defined as a combined endpoint of ACS, percutaneous coronary intervention, coronary artery bypass grafting, coronary angiography revealing procedurally correctable stenosis managed conservatively and all-cause mortality |
Study design |
An iterative step-wise approach will be conducted:
|
Inclusion criteria (PICO) for D-dimer POCT
Population |
Adult patients ?18 years with low pre-test probability of deep venous thrombosis (DVT) or pulmonary embolism (PE) with symptoms such as leg swelling, chest pain or trouble breathing that are potentially indicative of DVT or PE, presenting in primary care (general practice, internal medicine or pulmonology in private practice) and has not been ruled out. Specific high-risk groups of patients (e.g. those with a previous VTE or those with cancer) will be excluded. Emergency care will be excluded. MeSH-terms: Pulmonary Embolism, venous thrombosis, thromboembolism, “fibrin fibrinogen degradation products” Pulmonary embolism ICD 10: 0882, I269, I260; Deep vein thrombosis ICD 10: I801, I828, I829, O223, I822, I820, I802, I81, O082, I823, O871; Thrombophlebitis ICD 10: I809, I821, I808, I803. |
Intervention |
Quantitative D-dimer POCTs included the following products:
with the intention to rule-out the presence of venous thromboembolism often in conjunction with use of a clinical prediction rule (e.g., such as Wells or Geneva). |
Comparison |
All comparators will be included. For the impact of POCT on patient management, usual care (incl. central laboratory methods) will be used. In the diagnostic performance testing, reference standard tests are likely to include computerized tomography pulmonary angiography (CTPA), ultrasound, venography/ angiography and laboratory testing (as opposed to the near-patient testing devices). |
Outcomes |
Effectiveness/clinical utility in patient-management:
Safety: AEs, SAEs Diagnostic accuracy
|
Study design |
An iterative step-wise approach will be conducted:
|
Systematic literature search in 4 databases and 1 clinical trial registry:
- INAHTA Database
- Cochrane Library
- Medline via Ovid
- Embase
- ClinicalTrials.gov.
Search limited to studies published in German or English since June 2019 to March 2024.
Literature Selection: Abstract and full text literature selection is conducted by 2 reviewers (MH, CW). First reviewer screens all abstracts, the second reviewer only the excluded studies The literature selection process will be presented via a PRISMA diagram.
- If no SRs can be identified, or available SRs require updating, primary studies will be searched in the databases listed above.
Data extraction: The following data will be extracted: study details (author, country, setting, number of patients, length of follow-up), patient characteristics, intervention characteristics, outcomes (as defined in the PICO table above). Data will be extracted by the first reviewer (MH) and checked by the second reviewer (JE).
Data synthesis: The outcomes will be reported as qualitative evidence synthesis.
Risk of bias and strength of evidence: Risk of bias assessment will be conducted by two researchers (MH, JE) using the according Risk of Bias Tool (https://www.latitudes-network.org/)
Time schedule/ milestones:
Period |
Task |
February to March 2024 |
Systematic literature search, abstract screening, full text screening and study selection, PRISMA diagram |
April to May 2024 |
Critical appraisal (risk of bias assessment), data extraction |
June 2024 |
1st Draft for internal review, Revision and external review |
July 2024 |
Completion of final report |
References:
Goetz, G. and Schmidt, L. and Erdos, J. and Ciutan, M. and Florescu, S. and Sasu, C. and Scintee, S. G. (2019): POCT/ Point of Care Tests: D-Dimer and Troponin. HTA-Projektbericht 124. https://eprints.aihta.at/1224/