Reproducibility of cardiac biomarkers response to prolonged treadmill exercise

We examined the reproducibility of alterations in cardiac biomarkers after two identical bouts of prolonged exercise in young athletes. Serum high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) levels were assessed before and after exercise. Significant rises in median hs-cTnT and NT-proBNP occurred in both trials. While the absolute changes in hs-cTnT were smaller after trial 2, the pattern of change was similar and the delta scores were significantly related. However, the change in NT-proBNP was not correlated between trials. The hs-cTnT release demonstrates some consistency after exercise although the blunted hc-cTnT response requires further study.