Robert Oubre, MD | The Doctor of Documentation Profile picture
Nov 19, 2022 β€’ 15 tweets β€’ 3 min read β€’ Read on X
What should you call that elevated troponin?

This is NOT taught well and impacts more than you think.

Understand it in 2 minutes:
The problem?

πŸ’™ Most don't understand how to interpret troponins
πŸ’™ Most don't understand the actual definition of an infarction
πŸ’™ Proper diagnosis (& documentation) ➑️ impacts clinical decisions and quality metrics

Let's dig in ‡️
First, pay close attention to the three I-words:

1️⃣ Injury
2️⃣ Ischemia
3️⃣ Infarction

They have three distinct meanings and easy to get them mixed up.
Two things must be present for an acute Myocardial INFARCTION
1️⃣ Acute myocardial INJURY
2️⃣ ISCHEMIC Signs OR symptoms
(notice the *OR* here)

Let's break those down.

First, myocardial injury...
1 / What is INJURY?

A fluctuation of troponins by 20%. Whether this be:
πŸ’™ A rise of 20% (with at least one elevated or
πŸ’™ A fall of 20% if initial was elevated

What if elevated but does not change by 20%? Will answer this later.

Next, ischemia...
2 / What are ISCHEMIC Signs & symptoms?

Symptoms
πŸ’™ Angina
πŸ’™ Anginal Equivalents (SOB, diaphoresis, nausea, lightheadedness)
πŸ’™ Syncope
πŸ’™ Flash pulmonary edema
πŸ’™ Palpations
πŸ’™ Cardiac arrest

and signs?...
Signs
πŸ’™ ST elevation or depression
πŸ’™ New flipped T wave
πŸ’™ New LBBB
πŸ’™ New pathological Q waves
πŸ’™ NM stress with new loss of viable myocardium (NOT scar)
πŸ’™ New ventricular wall motion abnormality
πŸ’™ Identification of coronary thrombus on LHC or autopsy
3 / What are the types of INFARCTions?

Type 1 (STEMI vs NSTEMI)
πŸ’™ Acute coronary artery occlusion due to plaque disruption
πŸ’™ Treatment ➑️ dissolve clot / open blockage

(Reminder: Must have Injury + Ischemic signs or symptoms) Image
Type 2 (NSTEMI)
πŸ’™ Imbalance between myocardial oxygen supply and/or demand results in INFARCTion
πŸ’™ Treatment ➑️ relieve demand / non-CAD factors

(Reminder: Must have Injury + Ischemic signs or symptoms) Image
Other types of infarctions:

Type 3 = Sudden death without biomarkers
Type 4a = PCI related AMI
Type 4b = Due to stent thrombosis
Type 4c = Stent re-stenosis
TYpe 5 = CABG related.

Won't go into detail about these.
4 / What about elevated troponins alone?

That is myocardial INJURY w/o ischemia (thus not infarction)

πŸ’™ 20% rise / fall? = Acute Injury
Ex: Acute CHF, myocarditis, etc.

πŸ’™ No 20% rise / fall? = Chronic injury
Ex: CKD, structural heart disease, etc.
Your "troponin leaks" Image
5 / What is Demand Ischemia?!

This DOES NOT exist in the 4th universal definition of MI.
but it does in coding.
Guidance is unclear & conflicting.

Use this if:
πŸ’™ Have a setting of supply / demand mismatch
πŸ’™ But have ischemia WITHOUT injury (but not both bc then = T2 NSTEMI)
In summary:

1️⃣ Myocardial Injury = 20% change of elevated troponins
2️⃣ Infarct = Injury + Ischeimic signs *OR* symptoms
3️⃣ Troponemia, troponin leak, troponitis, & Elevated troponin are not diagnoses.
4️⃣ Demand ischemia = ischemia without injury
This all has downstream impacts too nuanced for a Twitter thread. Subscribe to my newsletter for a deeper dive (link in bio).

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More from @Dr_Oubre

Jul 23, 2024
My mother called me in a panic (and how that call helped me understand Medicare Advantage):

"Robert, they told me I have bad blood flow in my legs. What do I do?!"

Woah. Wait, what? Who told you that? Image
"A nurse that came to our house."

A nurse? A nurse from where?

"Our insurance company."

Why did a nurse come out from your insurance company?

"I don't know. They called us and said it was part of the benefits of being with them that they would do a nursing check on us."
Does your PCP know about this?

"I don't know. I guess so? Maybe they'll send the report to him."

And they told you you had bad blood flow in your legs? How did they determine that?

"They took my blood pressure in my arms and legs."

Bam. There it was. They did an ABI.
Read 7 tweets
Jan 13, 2024
Daily rounding can be overwhelming for med students and residents.

As a full time hospitalist, here are 3 steps I use every day to stay organized with a full census:
Step 1: Check that thing you need to follow up.

Was a CT ordered yesterday? A daily weight for heart failure? Etc...

Check those first to make sure you don't overlook them. That's typically high-level info.

But don't stop there...
Step 2: Review notes

Re-Review consultant notes or notes that are new since the last time you checked.

Don't forget nursing notes. They can often make you aware of overnight events you weren't told about.

This will give context to your data review...
Read 7 tweets
Oct 10, 2023
In SOAP notes, mistakes dominate assessment and plans.

To stand out and prevent mistakes, you need to understand the principles behind accurate yet efficient notes.

Here are 4 habits for mastering a mistake-free A&P:
1️⃣ Format for easy editing

A&P's have assessments....and plans. Don't mix them together.

Keep them separate. This way you can
πŸ”ΉDelete the reasoning the next day (if it was accurate) for conciseness
πŸ”ΉQuickly edit versus sifting through a paragraph - saving you time ⌚

ExπŸ‘‡ Image
2️⃣ Use dates vs relative terms

Everyone is copy/forwarding their plan from their prior note. Relative terms such as "tomorrow," "yesterday," and "in 6 weeks" become inaccurate.

Dates remain accurate despite copy/forward.

You also don't need to edit them, saving you time⌚
Read 8 tweets
Aug 26, 2023
Imagine a loved one being treated incorrectly for their MI.

Yet...do YOU even understand when an NSTEMI is really an NSTEMI?

Finally understand it in 2 minutes:
First, pay close attention to the three I-words:

1️⃣ Injury
2️⃣ Ischemia
3️⃣ Infarction

They have three distinct meanings and easy to get them mixed up.
Two things must be present for an acute Myocardial INFARCTION
1️⃣ Acute myocardial INJURY
2️⃣ ISCHEMIC Signs OR symptoms
(notice the *OR* here)

Let's break those down.

First, myocardial injury...
Read 14 tweets
Aug 15, 2023
"CHF" doesn't cut it anymore.

You have to classify heart failure to truly know how to treat the patient.

3 tips to classifying heart failure and ensuring proper care:
1 / Ejection Fraction

πŸ”Ή HF w reduced EF (HFrEF): LVEF ≀40%
πŸ”Ή HF w preserved EF (HFpEF): LVEF β‰₯50%
πŸ”Ή HF w mildly reduced EF (HFmrEF): LVEF 41–49%
πŸ”Ή HF w improved EF (HFimpEF): LVEF ≀40% + β‰₯10 pt increase from baseline, w/ 2nd >40%

But what about systolic vs diastolic?
That's the "old" way of classifying heart failure but is still needed for coding.. but coders convert it for you:

πŸ”Ή HFrEF & HFmrEF = Systolic
πŸ”Ή HFpEF = Diastolic

HFimpEF will likely result in you getting a query.
Read 9 tweets
Aug 13, 2023
A patient can be harmed by a bad discharge summary.

But writing a good discharge summary can be a strain on your time.

3 tips to writing an efficient yet affective discharge summary:
1 / Write it near the time of discharge.

Patient going to a SNF? Or PCP follow up in 3 days?

A discharge summary written 7 days later doesn't help.

Plus, it's quicker to write when it's fresh in your mind.

Don't put it off.
2 / Use headlines

Those reading your discharge summary have different needs.

Use headlines such as:

πŸ”Ή Discharge diagnosis
πŸ”Ή Medication changes
πŸ”Ή Outpatient follow up needs:

This way information can be found at a glance.
Read 7 tweets

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