The growing role of cardiac markers has been elucidated in patients with acute coronary syndrome, heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases.

The markers can be cytosolic like heart-type fatty-acid-binding protein (H-FABP) and creatine kinase MB (CKMB), myofibrillary like troponin T (TnT) and cardio-endocrine like B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and N-terminal proBNP (NT-proBNP).

The usefulness of a point-of-care TnT test is compared with the usefulness of a point-of-care H-FABP test in patients with suspicious acute coronary syndrome. The importance of BNP or NT-proBNP measurements in acute coronary syndrome (NSTEMI) is discussed based on large-scale clinical trials and our investigation.

Progressive deterioration of ventricular function is common in patients with severe chronic heart failure. H-FABP and TnT are markers of ongoing myocardial damage and are associated with subsequent cardiac events in patients with chronic heart failure. The significance of detection of ongoing myocardial damage in chronic heart failure is discussed.