Abstract Body: Cardiac troponins are established markers of myocardial injury but may also reflect subclinical cardiovascular stress in non-ischemic conditions such as hypertension. We assessed the association between high-sensitivity cardiac troponin levels and hypertension in the U.S. population. A cross-sectional analysis of 13,876 adults from the NHANES 1999–2004 cohort was conducted. We evaluated the association between elevated levels of hs-Troponin T (Roche) and hs-Troponin I (Abbott, Siemens, Ortho) with both physician-diagnosed and visit-based hypertension using logistic regression models, adjusting for demographic and clinical covariates. Diagnostic accuracy (sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV, AUC) was calculated for each assay.
Elevated hs-troponin levels were associated with significantly higher odds of diagnosed hypertension in partially adjusted models (ORs: 1.61–2.02, all p<0.001). Similar findings were observed for visit-based hypertension (ORs: 1.47–1.54). However, these associations became non-significant in fully adjusted models. The hs-Troponin T test had a sensitivity of 75.5% but poor specificity (6.0%). Hs-Troponin I (Siemens) had slightly higher diagnostic performance (AUC 69.7%).
Elevated high-sensitivity troponin levels are associated with hypertension, reflecting potential myocardial stress. However, limited specificity reduces their utility as standalone diagnostic tools for hypertension. These findings support further research into their role in risk stratification among hypertensive patients.